Star Fox: Retaliation!
by AchillesShield
Summary: The Apariod war is over and the Star Fox team got back into the mercenary business with the repaired Great Fox! But suddenly, a response to an SOS call goes awry... R&R! (Previous Title-Star Fox:Afterwar)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

 _Unknown source_

The hot afternoon sun shone illuminating the pitiful figures of slaves in the courtyard. Guards stood around, keeping watchful eyes and their fingers on the trigger of their blasters, waiting for someone to make a move. The slaves were hard at work, waiting for their shift to finally end. They knew that any mistake or delay, would cause them to be subjected to the lash. They were chained to each other, which only limited their movements and restricted escape. Sweat rolled down their faces as the lizard, Commander Ragas bellowed orders at them.

Commander Ragas was a sight to behold. The tall and muscular lizard towered above the rest of his kind. He wore a purple cloak to symbol his ranking and he had two guns holstered on his back behind the cloak. Although it seems that he was weaponless, truthfully, Commander Ragas could draw and fire in the blink of an eye which has been proven several times in the past. But the feature that Commander Ragas took pride in was his tail. He had fastened a spike to the end of it and he used it a whip to encourage slaves and a weapon in close quarter combat. The Commander watched the pitiful slave willing and waiting for someone to make a fatal mistake.

The Commander's wish came true when an old rabbit stumbled and fell, causing the other slaves behind to follow his actions. The slave in front of the rabbit, a cat turned and quickly tried to help him up. But as he reached down, his arm was whipped backwards causing him to groan in pain. Looking at the tail, the cat noticed that it belonged to the cruel lizard commander who was grinning evilly. Ragas walked over to the pitiful figure of the rabbit and enjoyed the fear coming out of his eyes. "We all know what happens to slaves who fall behind don't we?" Ragas asked.

The Commander was greeted with silence that was broken due to the whimper of the rabbit. "DO WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENS?" the lizard bellowed.

Ragas smiled as he noticed the slaves shrink with fear, their paws raised up, as a beg for mercy. "We punish them. That's what we do to slaves that disobey and not keep up according to their orders." the evil lizard said. He raised his tail to lash out on the rabbit, but at the last minute, the cat threw his body over the ancient creature. The tail came down and the cat grunted in pain. The cat's actions only infuriated the lizard Commander and caused him to lash relentlessly on the cat's back. The cat grunted and groaned as he took the brunt of the punishment. The guards that stood around on the rampart watching laughed as the cat tried to keep up his strength against the lizard. After feeling that the cat earned enough punishment, Ragas turned and walked back to the huge double doors of the castle. But he stopped and turned around and spoke with an evil grin "Unchain the rabbit and the cat. Take them to see the Emperor."

Ragas laughed and entered the castle as guards rushed to unchain the whimpering rabbit and the unconscious cat.

The Emperor sat at the head of the table eating dinner. The giant panther towered above the table and the food, his tail swishing behind him. He was as black as the midnight and full of muscle and sinew. A scar traced down his cheek ending down on his chin. His left eye was missing, but in its place was a ruby eyepatch. Although the panther has other subjects do his dirty work, he doesn't shy away from combat at first opportunity. Rather, he prides himself in his combat skills with his poisoned tipped claws and his shooting abilities. Hearing the doors open, the panther immediately knew who it was.

"Commander Ragas, I told you that I was not to be disturbed at my evening time meals."

"I apologize my lord, but I have some prisoners that needs to see you." the shifty lizard answered.

The Emperor sighed, wiped his mouth and guzzled down a cup of wine. He stood up and faced the lizard commander. "What happened this time Ragas?"

Commander Ragas motioned towards the doorway and guards walked in escorting the aged rabbit and the cat who was awake from the brutality he received. "The rabbit stumbled in the slave line and the cat refused to obey my orders." Ragas sneered.

The Emperor eyed both slaves. The rabbit was hunched with age and his body showed malnutrition. He was shaking with fear, wondering what the Emperor's wrath would incite. The cat however stood tall even though he felt pain from the beatings inflicted earlier. Blood and scars showed up on his body as the cat stared at the Emperor defiantly. The Emperor was amazed at the cat's rebellious nature. Finally, the panther took in a breath and turned sideways motioning the dinner table. "I see you must be hungry," the Emperor said, "Working out in the hot sun must create quite an appetite!"

The lizard Commander stared at his Emperor with disbelief. "My… my lord?" Ragas croaked.

"You heard me Ragas. Please unchain them. Allow them to eat to their hearts delight."

The aged rabbit could hardly believe his ears. Maybe the Emperor was not a bad animal at all! As Ragas unhooked his chains, the rabbit bounded towards the table, his mouth watering at the site of the food. But the cat stayed motionless where he stood, staring resolutely at the Emperor. The black panther admired the cat's courage, ignoring the chomping coming out from the rabbit.

"Why don't you join your friend at the table? There is plenty of food to be shared around."

The cat stood silently. "Answer you fool! Answer the Emperor!" Commander Ragas yelled.

The panther held up his paw, silencing the lizard in his tirade. "That's enough Ragas!" he ordered. The Emperor moved closely to the determined cat and kneeled which brought an exclamation of disbelief from the lizard commander. His single emerald colored eye stared at the cat. The cat stood motionlessly and only stared back. "Why don't you obey me?" The Emperor asked.

Finally the cat answered, "Because I don't bow down to someone who is so evil and vile. I believe there are good in all animals."

Commander Ragas raised his tail to lash out at the cat for his insolence but as the tail fell, the commander was surprise to find that it was stopped by the cat. Knowing that the commander was behind him, the cat heard the whishing noise of the tail. At the last possible moment, the cat rolled out of the way and grabbed the tail, wrapping it around his paws. The Emperor watched silently as the cat immediately pulled the commander closer and closer while Ragas was screeching for guards. Suddenly the world disappeared as the cat landed a thundering left hook to the face. Guards rushed in and pointed their blasters readying to shoot. The Emperor raised his paws stopping them from doing so.

Silence reigned for a couple of minutes and it was finally broken from the sound of the old rabbit falling off the chair in a faint. The Emperor ignored the rabbit and instead said to the cat. "What's your name cat?"

"Zargos _my liege_ " the cat answered sarcastically.

The black panther breathed through his nose trying to stop the rage from building up inside of him. "Zargos…. You know what happens to prisoners who attacks a member of my Elite Guard?"

The cat didn't answer prompting the Emperor to reply for him, "We kill them. We replace them with young fresh prisoners." Suddenly the mad panther started to laugh "But not you…. No…. I have plans for you. Guards! Please take him away and throw him into the hole!"

"And for this one," the Emperor said turning to the rabbit who was slowly but surely waking up. "Put him with the others." The guards jumped to his orders grabbing the shaking rabbit and dragging him out of the room. Zargos shook away from their grasp and due to their encouragement from the blasters, turned and walked out of the giant double doors where he came from.

The Emperor silently sat down at the head of the table, and suddenly with a roar he swiped the plates full of food and sent them crashing against the wall and ground. The crash awoke Commander Ragas and the humiliated lizard painfully dragged himself upright.

"Do you have orders for me… your majesty?" the Commander asked.

The Emperor stood panting with his paws on the table calming himself down from his rage, his mind working overtime for different options. Then he shook his head. "Not at this time Ragas. Not at this time." the sly panther said laughing.

Zargos the cat was being constantly pushed along the rocky pavement. He tripped over a rock and a lizard guard hissed viciously while poking him with the blaster urging him to stand up. Zargos stood up quickly and hurried along the road outside of the slave's compound. He only had the moonlight showing the way but still his visibility was limited. The air was hot and humid from sun's heat all day. Moisture stuck to Zargos' fur but he hardly paid any notice to it for the guards were pushing and prodding him with the points of their blasters. Zargos felt a reptile claw on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. He felt the lizard hiss in his ears "This way to the hole prisoner!"

The cat made no move which caused the guard to jab painfully in his back. Zargos stumbled forward catching himself. He stood upright and moved slowly. A breeze whooshed in his face in which the feline was grateful for. A cool weather was hard to find in this barren place the Emperor called home. Upon arriving to the hole, a lizard guard opened the grate and motioned for Zargos to jump in. The cat made no move which only made the guards furious and then shoved him into the dark, deep hole.

Zargos fell and hit the bottom with a grunt, the air driven out of him. He heard the grate shut with a clank and then huddled against the wall, waiting for the morning.

The mad Emperor sat on his throne with slaves fanning him in a desperate attempt to cool the panther down. Knowing that their jobs and even their life was on the line, the slaves kept up the demanding speed that the Emperor required of them. The muscular panther was in deep thought, his paws stroking his chin, and he didn't notice the slaves slowing down with the fans. Commander Ragas stood next to the Emperor, his tail flickering which made a whooshing noise.

The giant brown doors opened with a thud and a lizard guard rushed in. Upon arriving at the throne, the lizard fell face first into the ground, awaiting for permission. Commander Ragas hissed and said "Rise up and face your Emperor"

The lowly lizard guard stood up and stared at the Emperor's single eye and uttered three simple words. "It has begun"

The guard bowed and scurried back the way he had come from. Silence reigned the room for a couple of moments. Suddenly the Emperor laughed loudly causing the slaves to jump with fear and Commander Ragas to look in bewilderment. Joy overtook the mad Emperor as tears rolled down his face. Then as quickly as it began, the black panther was silent and he stood up. "Commander Ragas, will you oversee preparations?" The Commander of the Elite Guard bowed and walked down the hallway, his purple cloak swirling.

The mad Emperor sighed and he turned to his seat and swiped the dust off the cushion. The panther sat down with a sigh, then he allowed an evil chuckle to escape his lips. The slaves quaked with fear, wondering what was running through the Emperor's mind. "I will have my revenge!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Enter Star Fox

 _The Lylat System_

A huge ship floated silently in space. Its powerful thrusters constantly pushing, chugging the ship along the depths of darkness. Stars blazed, its' lights reflecting off the giant frame of the ship. The ship was of a unique design, for nothing else compared to its heavy firepower and defensive bodywork as it proudly pushed its way through the stars aiming for its destination. A planet of the Lylat System.

Fox McCloud stood on the command bridge, his eyes surveying the scene before him. His light brown fur reflecting the light of the stars. Fox wore a simple green shirt with a tan jacket and brown pants. His blaster was safely holstered in his belt and he folded his arms. After standing like this for a few moments, Fox sighed and shook his head as he walked back to the captain's chair and sat down. _I'm getting tired of this business_ he thought _but this life is the only life I have ever known. What would I do when I'm done?_ He pulled out his communications device, turned it on and said "ROB, can you come to the command bridge please? ROB to the bridge."

"Affirmative, I am on my way." ROB answered.

Fox sat and pondered his options on what to do when the GreatFox neared Corneria, the main planet of the Lylat System. _What can I do anyways? I don't have enough money to support this ship, this crew_. Fox smiled as he thought back on all the wild and crazy adventures he had. The attack against Andross, the crazed and delusional monkey scientist, on the planet Venom; preventing the Dinosaur Planet from getting blown up and finally stopping the aparoids from virtually wiping out the entire Lylat System. He thought of his crew, Falco Lombardi, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, ROB the robot and finally Krystal.

 _Oh Krystal, sweet, sweet Krystal. What did I ever do to deserve you?_ A picture of the graceful blue furred female fox filled his mind. _Krystal, I'm so sorry… I wish this_ …

The doors to the command bridge opened snapping Fox back to reality. ROB walked over next to Fox and asked in a robotic voice "Yes Fox, how can I be of service?"

"ROB, what is the ETA to Corneria?" Fox asked

"ETA to Corneria is one hour" ROB answered.

"Perfect ROB. That would be all. Also can you send for Falco and Slippy? Do you mind waking up Peppy because he will be needed on the bridge?"

"Affirmative." was the robot's only reply.

Fox shook his head and smiled. That robot had been with the crew through thick and thin, with unwavering loyalty that knew no bounds. Of course Slippy programmed him to be that way. Fox stood up and stretched feeling his muscles groan from being stiff. His body was made up of all muscle as his hours of training and combat drilled it to perfection. He walked through the double doors making his way towards the rooms in the GreatFox. As Fox rounded the corner, he saw Falco, Slippy and Peppy making their way towards him.

Peppy was a plump old rabbit with a bushy mustache. His outwards appearance, although showed age, proved that he was not a rabbit to be messed with. His jacket showed the StarFox insignia with medals awarded by General Pepper, the leader of the Cornerian Defense Force, decorated around it. Fox smiled as he looked upon Peppy. Peppy was the oldest member of the StarFox team and was the wingman to James McCloud, Fox's father. After James lost his life in the first battle against Andross due to the betrayal of Pigma Dengar, another wingman of James, Peppy broke the news to a young Fox and took it upon himself to raise the cub the way his father would wanted. As Peppy walked, he was speaking urgently to Slippy about something while Falco rolled his eyes.

Slippy Toad was a short toad full of knowledge of all things related to engines and machines. His face was smeared with oil and grime that he hadn't washed off for days. His usually bright yellow shirt underneath his soot stained overalls were becoming dark. Although he had seen a fair share of combat, he preferred to stay on the GreatFox to maintain mechanical malfunctions ship repairs. However, when Peppy retired from the combat role he elected to stay on the GreatFox and act as a backup reserve as well as a strategist for the other crew members who were engaged in combat, Slippy accepted the full responsibility of being a combat pilot. Although, not the most skillful pilot of the StarFox team, Slippy could hold his own. Slippy and Fox met at pilot training for the Cornerian Defense Force and upon meeting each other, they became fast friends. When Fox's father died and Fox became the leader of the StarFox team, he immediately recruited Slippy to help with the work.

Falco Lombardi was a free spirited blue bird who was arrogant as much as he was sarcastic and loyal. He wore his favorite black leather jacket with red pants and sunglasses perched upon his head. Falco nodded at Fox as he opened another piece of gum and put it in his mouth. Falco's love for gum cannot be as compared to his love for combat and maybe Katt Monroe. Falco was a part of the StarFox team when Fox was put at the captain position. Fox hired Falco because he showed great skills with the Arwing, a plane that the StarFox team used. In fact, Falco's skills with the Arwing was so superior to the other crew members, but even Falco couldn't match Fox's. Although the two heads fiercely clashed with each other, Falco's loud mouth questioning Fox's leadership, had caused Falco to leave the team. However, his loyalty with Fox and the StarFox team always trumped his ego and he always came back.

As the crew stopped before Fox, Slippy and Peppy stopped their conversation and Falco leaned nonchalantly against the wall. Fox looked at his crew and suddenly found himself wishing for a familiar presence. A face that he wished in his heart to see again. _Oh Krystal, what I would give to have you back here again._ Fox thought¸ _I wish you knew how much you meant to me._

"Ummm. Fox? Are you alright?" Slippy asked.

"Huh? Yeah. I'm quite fine. We need to begin preparations to land in Corneria." Fox answered as he turned around and quickly wiped the moisture from his eyes.

Slippy nodded and patted sadly on Fox's back as he turned to head towards the hangar. Falco sighed and scratched his head as he followed Slippy out of the hallway. Peppy harrumphed and looked at Fox, "I know Fox. We all miss her you know?" He patted Fox's shoulder and left the hall leaving him alone.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: **I know that these chapters seem short, but I promise they get longer. Please feel free to leave a review and let me know how I can get better. I already worked on these chapters ahead of time (I started in June) and I am still not done with the story. Have a wonderful day everyone!**

Chapter Three

 _Corneria_

General Pepper sat at his desk in his office at the Cornerian Defense Force headquarters with a stack of reports before him. He was an old, yet fit, bull hound who wore a red jacket with medals decorated on it for his years of service. _So much work to do, yet so little time_ the distinguished General thought. He stood up and a groan escaped his mouth as the rib injury started to flare up from the Aparoid War. _If Peppy wasn't there to help me, I'd be dead meat_ the General thought smiling. He and Peppy Hare were fond friends, along with James McCloud before his fateful death. _Ah James… Now HE was an honorable and a great fighter_ Pepper thought solemnly. He remembered seeing Fox break down into tears when Peppy broke the news to the orphan. _Nobody should live life without a dad. Good for Peppy, he raised Fox good_. The General walked outside into the main arena of the CDF.

Animals of various kinds and specie was busy at work, giving orders and carrying stacks of papers to and fro. A mouse approached the General and saluted him saying "Sir, there is an unidentified craft approaching the Cornerian atmosphere, sir!"

"At ease soldier," the General replied "An unidentified craft you say eh? Well, I have an idea of who it is."

The mouse gave off a brisk salute then turned around and walked off quickly back to his station. Pepper moved to the hologram communication center and clicked the button. After placing in a contact to the unidentifiable craft, he was welcomed with a familiar face.

"Hello General! How are you doing today?" Peppy Hare asked.

"I'm doing well in these circumstances." the General replied as Peppy's cheerful face turned into sorrow, "How is Fox handling things?"

Peppy sighed, "Right now, he is composing himself, but I know him. He blames himself for what happened. What he doesn't realize is that he is not the only one that misses her. Everyone on this crew has a reason to miss her."

General Pepper nodded "And yours is?"

"Just the way the room always brighten whenever she walks in. She could easily turn a frown into a smile with her laugh. Krystal has been good to all of us, but we all know how much she meant to Fox."

Pepper agreed sadly "I know Peppy, I know. She was the brightest star in his life eh?"

"Oh the brightest! You know how hard Fox took it when his father died? Well, he is taking it even harder."

Pepper sighed and replied, "I just wanted to let you know that I look forward to the service on Sunday. Anyways, you are clear to land and I will personally open the hangar doors for all of you."

"Thanks General. Peppy out!" was the answer.

As the hologram disappeared, General Pepper turned and walked back to the main room of the CDF. _Krystal was an important asset to the team_ he thought, _I can't imagine how Fox is feeling_. The distinguished general rubbed his temples and sighed. _I am getting way too old for this. I have seen my fair share of combat_. To no one in particular the he said, "Alright, lets welcome them home."

Fox McCloud sat in the cockpit of his Arwing, feeling the friendly hum of the engine, as his plane made its way to the launch pad. Falco was on his right, Slippy his left and Peppy on Slippy's side. The StarFox team opted to leave ROB on the Great Fox orbiting the Cornerian atmosphere to watch out for danger.  
"All right guys. It's go time, strap yourself in" Fox said

"Like we never do?" was the sarcastic response of Falco.

Fox felt his body push back against his seat as the launch pad shot out the Arwing, his eyes adjusting to the dark, yet beautiful scene before him. The stars lit up like candle lights as the light blue planet of Corneria remained motionless underneath him.

"All right Fox, everyone is out" Peppy said through the static of the comms channel. "Lead everyone won't you? And Falco, _please_ no showboating. You know what happened the last time you did that?"

"Aww common Peppy. It was all fun and games!" Falco complained

"Yes, if you say causing thousands of people losing their minds with fear and fainting, fun and games." Slippy interjected.

Falco smirked and said 'They are just not ready to handle me." He added quietly, "amateurs."

"Falco…" Peppy warned.

"Alright, alright gramps. Chill your carrots. I won't do it again" Falco said with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

The four Arwings flew through the Cornerian atmosphere. As the clouds cleared, Fox surveyed the beauty of the towns in his home planet. _Almost the perfect place to settle down and have a family_ he thought, _But there is no one I would rather settle down with than her_. His mind went back to the days after he first rescued Krystal.

 _Fox walked into the kitchen finding no one but Slippy. The short toad was pouring himself a bowl of cereal to take with him to watch his Saturday morning cartoons. "Our money from General Pepper finally got transferred to our account," Slippy said._

 _"_ _Oh, thanks Slippy. Hey, have you seen Krystal about?"_

 _"_ _Krystal? Oh, I haven't. She's probably still in her room though." the toad replied as he exited the kitchen with his bowl._

 _Fox sighed and debated whether or not to check in with the vixen. He gave in and gathered the courage to see her. The vulpine walked to Krystal's room but before he could knock, he heard "Come in."_

 _Fox pressed the button which caused the door to slide open. He looked around the room noticing a figure sitting on the bed holding a staff. "Erm… Krystal, are you alright?" Fox asked, "It's just that I haven't seen you in the past couple of days. Have you eaten?"_

 _The vulpine was greeted without an answer. Krystal was staring intently onto her staff. She finally sighed, got up, and placed the staff on her desk. "Yes, I ate. Thank you Fox."_

 _However Fox could sense that something was troubling her. "Krystal? What's the matter?" he asked._

 _After a couple of moments of silence, the blue furred fox answered "Fate is so cruel you know? Everywhere I go, everything I do, darkness seems to follow me. Look at my home world Cerinia. Look at the Dinosaur planet. I've been stuck in that crystal for who knows how long. It doesn't matter what I try to do, everything just gets…. Destroyed._

 _Fox took a step forward and said "We rescued Dinosaur planet remember? And yes, fate may be cruel, but look at what happened!"_

 _Krystal met his gaze with intensity that melted his heart "what?"_

 _"_ _I met you."_

Fox was dragged back to reality when he heard General Pepper speak through the comms "The hangar is open and ready for your arrival."

"Thanks Pepper. I'll see you in a couple of minutes." Fox answered.

The vulpine guided his other comrades into the open hangar, as they prepared for the inevitable to happen: Krystal's memorial service.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Finals are happening soon and I won't be writing as much anymore as I need to study. But luckily I finished chapters 5-8 and I will be uploading them once a day starting tomorrow. I hope you are enjoying the story as much as I am writing it. Please feel free to leave a review since both positive and negative reviews help improve my writing skills! -AchillesShield**

Chapter 4

 _Corneria_

Fox McCloud stood in front of the mirror silently as he adjusted his bowtie of his suit in his hotel room. He hated that he had to get out of his normal combat outfit for something more formal. General Pepper and Peppy both insisted that he dressed into something nice to pay his respects. Fox shook his head as tears silently rolled down his brown face. _I miss you so much Krystal_ , the vulpine thought _, how I wish I would hold you again._ Fox sat down on his bed as his body shook with sobs as tears started to pour out of his eyes. He buried his head in his paws wishing that he would have done something more for Krystal. _I failed you my sweetheart. I am so, so sorry. When you needed me the most, I wasn't there. But I promise you Krystal, I will always love you even though I haven't told you_.

A knock sounded on the door as Fox stood up and quickly wiped his eyes. He walked slowly to the door and looked through the peephole and after seeing who it was, he opened it. Falco Lombardi walked inside the room. He was wearing a grey suit with a navy blue tie around his neck. The bird had his sunglasses perched on his forehead and as usual, he was chewing his gum. As Falco walked in, he patted Fox on the back and sat down on the chair next to the bed. Fox closed and locked the door behind him and silently followed Falco and opted to sit on the edge of the bed.

"So… how are we doing?" Falco asked breaking the silence.

"It's hard. I can't stop thinking about her. She was the best thing that has happened in my life besides restarting the Star Fox team. I… I just wished that I had more time with her," the vulpine answered his voice cracking, "I mean, I haven't told her how I felt. Maybe things would be different if she knew."

"Fox. If there is one thing that I took out of your relationship with Krystal; it's that she knows how much she meant to you. I would even bet that she knew that you loved her."

"But there is no way of finding that out now you know? That feeling of your loved one being gone from your life. I hate that feeling of helplessness because you feel so alone."

Falco nodded sadly thinking about his old romance Katt Monroe. The blue bird and the feline had a romance relationship when they were together in their own mercenary team called the Hot Rodders. The relationship became hard when Falco and Katt got in an argument when Star Fox asked Falco to join their team. It eventually ended when the argument became so heated that Falco stormed out of the Hot Rodders headquarters and made a beeline for the Star Fox team. Although they had their differences, Falco still thought about the beautiful and graceful cat and wished that they were together again.

"I know the feeling," Falco said quietly, "But this is what I think. I think that you need to stop blaming yourself for what happened, but start celebrating her life. That's the whole purpose of this service. Krystal wouldn't want you to mope around and always hurting yourself. Instead she would want you to rise up and lead your crew."

Fox nodded, "I guess… you're right."

"Of course I'm right. You know what you need? You need more counseling sessions with Dr. Falco!"

Fox cracked a smile and said "Now you are just pushing your luck."

"At least I tried. Well, we need to get going." The blue bird stood up from his chair and motioned to the door.

Fox sighed, and thought _Krystal, I promise I will honor your memory and live my life the way you want me to live._ The vulpine got off the bed and followed Falco out into the hall. After riding the elevator down to the ground floor, the two friends stepped outside. The moment Fox stepped foot outside, he heard a bellow, "FOOOOOOOX!"

Fox turned and at the last minute saw a giant shape descending from the air, immediately squashing him against the ground, winding the vulpine. The dinosaur laid spread eagle on top of the fox covering his entire body except for the legs. Falco smiled and shook his head remarking "Your majesty, it's so good to see you again."

"Tr….Tricky, please get off me" Fox wheezed.

The leader of the EarthWalker clan answered "So sorry Fox! I just saw you and I became so excited! Are you alright?"

"I will be when you GET OFF!"

Tricky laughed as he rolled off and stood up. "Oh common Fox! You used to be able to pick me up and carry me around!"

"Yeah. That was when you were 100 pounds lighter." Fox grunted.

King Tricky, the leader of the EarthWalker clan snickered. He wasn't the young frolicking dinosaur he was when he had adventures with Fox on Dinosaur planet. Rather, Tricky was built with muscle and tough skin that only grew with age. His face was decorated with jewels of many different kinds. Rubies, sapphires and emeralds glistened as the sun reflected off it. The triceratops' horns were razor sharp, always ready in case enemies were about. Although dinosaurs and other species looked up to him with respect and admiration, Tricky was still a young kid at heart. He was thrust into the leadership role when King EarthWalker, Tricky's father, passed away from illness and old age. It was the Queen's, Tricky's mother, wish that the young dinosaur would become the new King of the leaderless EarthWalkers. The young King proved his doubters wrong when he immediately proved his wisdom and combat skills when the EarthWalker and the RedEye tribes had a brief war with the EarthWalkers emerging victorious.

Tricky's joyous expression turned to sorrow. "Oh Fox! I'm… I'm so sorry for your loss and of your crew's. If there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask! Remember that the EarthWalkers and the CloudRunners stand behind you always!"

Fox nodded with acknowledgement. During his adventure on Dinosaur planet, the vulpine had to search out the Spellstones and the Krazoa spirits to ensure that the planet wouldn't explode; which would cause a chain reaction resulting in the destruction of the entire Lylat System. During the perilous mission, Fox met with many different dinosaur tribes but the two that owed him so much were the EarthWalkers and the CloudRunners. The CloudRunners was a prideful tribe of pterodactyls who was in Fox's debt since he saved their Queen and their homeland. The EarthWalkers and the CloudRunners had a rocky history which was resolved between the two tribes after Fox's mission. The Queen of the CloudRunners stated "Because of Fox, our two tribes can now be at peace and will always support each other," to the cheering crowds as the treaty was signed.

"Thank you Tricky. You have always been my oldest friend and ally." Fox answered.

"No problem Fox! If you need anyone that needs bashing, you know where to find me!" the EarthWalker King jumped up and down joyfully.

Fox smiled, his spirits lifting a bit. _Tricky has always been a wonderful friend. He's been with me through thick and thin. If it wasn't for him, Dinosaur planet wouldn't have been saved._ That was true for Tricky had saved Fox's life numerous times with his fire breathing abilities and his knowledge of the planet. Although Tricky helped Fox, Fox always found himself returning the favor because the dinosaur would never listen to him and run ahead which caused him to be found and captured numerous of times.

Fox, Falco and Tricky made their way to the auditorium, a large building that was located next to the Cornerian Defense Force headquarters. The auditorium hosted plays, musicals and even in circumstances like these, memorial services for heroes who lost their lives. After finding their seats in the front row next to Slippy and Peppy, they waited for the service to begin. Fox gazed fondly of the pictures of Krystal on the table in the front of the stage. The pictures were of the blue furred vixen smiling at the camera, doing target practice and finally hugging Fox with his face red.

 _Fox walked inside the living room with a box wrapped inside the gift wrap. He gazed at the scene unfolding before him. Slippy was at the food table, loading his plate up with delicious food that the Cornerian chef could come up as usual. Peppy was sitting in the lounge chair fighting sleep while listening to old jazz wafting from the jukebox. Falco Lombardi was standing by the window talking to a familiar vixen with her back to Fox. As Falco saw him walk inside the room, the blue bird smiled causing Krystal to turn to see who walked in._

 _Fox walked towards Krystal, showing the gift. Krystal smiled, her turquoise colored eyes sparkling in the light. "Oh Fox! You didn't have to get me anything!"_

 _"_ _I didn't, but I wanted to. Happy birthday Krystal" Fox answered._

 _Krystal smiled as she accepted the gift. Slippy took his face out of the food and flinged a piece of mashed potatoes at Peppy, awaking him from his slumber. Falco stood nearby, leaning on the wall while chewing gum. At Fox's urging, Krystal opened the gift showing an earring in a star shape. Her face lit up at the priceless gift. "Oh Fox! You found it! It's so beautiful!" she gasped._

 _Fox smiled and said "I remembered that you were searching frantically around for that earring. I had a feeling that it had a lot of sentimental value to you."_

 _"_ _Oh yes Fox! This earring was my connection to Cerinia. My mother gave it to me when I was nothing but a kitten. How'd you ever find it?"_

 _"_ _It was actually in your Arwing." the vulpine answered, "wedged between your seat and the wall. Unfortunately, it was broken at some of the points. But luckily I found a jewel repairer who happened to be familiar with Cerinian metal. I hope you like it."_

 _"_ _Like it? Fox, I LOVE it!" the vixen squealed and threw herself into an embrace. Fox's face turned beet red as the camera snapped the picture._

The fanfare blared causing Fox to return to the present and look up. General Pepper walked on the stage and stood at the podium. After clearing his throat, the bull hound began. "After a couple of weeks of searching, I regret to say that Krystal, the last surviving member of Cerinia and part of the Star Fox team is presumed dead. I ask that you respect…."

The General's words became quieter and quieter until it was indistinguishable to Fox's ears. The vulpine felt at tear roll down his cheek as the face of Krystal filled his mind. _Krystal…. I love you and I will always. You are my star, and my crystal. There is nothing I wouldn't do for you_. He felt Tricky nudge his arm gently and the vulpine looked at the muscular dinosaur. Tricky smiled which caused Fox to rub the dinosaur's head.

"…. As we know, Krystal lost her life while the Star Fox team was responding to a distress call in the asteroid belt above the planet Dager….."

 _Fox McCloud stood on the command bridge of the Great Fox. Peppy and ROB the robot was busy at work. "Approaching the asteroid belt" the robot said._

 _Fox turned to the vixen next to him and said "Krystal, are you sure that this is where the distress call came from? If this is correct, the Great Fox can't even fit through the asteroid belt. We would have to go out in our Arwings."_

 _Krystal concentrated for a moment, her face a calm mask of beauty. "Yes. I can hear a creature crying out for help coming from this region."_

 _"_ _Say no more Krystal. Alright Falco, Slippy! Let's roll!" Fox exclaimed. Krystal turned and followed the crew acknowledging Peppy's "BE CAREFUL EVERYONE!" cry._

 _The Star Fox team got in their assigned Arwings and after launching, they flew in formation with Fox in the lead towards the asteroid belt._

 _"_ _Be careful everyone! It's going to be a rocky ride. One could easily get lost in here. Is everyone ready?" Fox spoke._

 _Greeted with statements of readiness, the crew flew to investigate the mysterious distress call._

"… When reaching the source of the distress call, the Star Fox team set out to investigate. However, they were ambushed by mysterious attackers, which we still don't know who to this day…."

 _The four Arwings arrived and noticed an escape pod floating near a huge rock, its walls showed damage from apparent blasters. Fox spoke through the comms channel and asked "Krystal, is this the area?"_

 _"_ _Yes, Fox. This is the place. The calling is very strong. My goodness… I wondered what happened here."_

 _"_ _Guys… I have a bad feeling about this…" Falco warned._

 _"_ _There is no one around here but rocks and someone who may need help!" Slippy protested. "Let's go check it out." The toad's Arwing inched closer and closer._

 _"_ _Slippy. Get back here! We don't want any nasty surprises!" Falco retorted._

 _Fox pondered his options and came to a decision. "Slippy, can you do a live reading of the pod?"_

 _"_ _Sure thing Fox!" Slippy answered. After a couple of minutes, the results came back "Huh? That's interesting. Are you sure we are in the right place Krystal?_

 _The blue vixen answered "Yes Slippy, I can feel their pain and their need for help. What's wrong?"_

 _"_ _Well, my life scans came back negative. That means there is no life in this escape pod._

 _"_ _What? That's impossible!" Krystal said with confusion in her voice._

 _"_ _GUYS! WE HAVE AN AMBUSH!" Falco yelled as a rock exploded next to him._

 _The 4 Arwings shot out of formation, with mysterious invaders hot on their tail. The comms crackled and Fox heard Peppy's voice "What's wrong Fox? What's going on?_

 _"_ _We've been lured in an ambush!" Fox yelled, "There must be hundreds of them!"_

 _Falco shot down another enemy and grunted "What a rescue mission this turned out to be."_

 _"_ _Fox! I need you guys to withdraw NOW! If there are a lot of enemies like you said, you need to get out of there!" Peppy ordered._

 _Fox nodded in agreement, "Alright team! You heard gramps! Let's get out of here!" The four Arwings shot down couple of more enemies but many more swarmed from the rocks._

"…. Krystal fought valiantly but she was eventually shot down and crashed into the planet of Dager…."

 _"_ _Team! Just a couple more minutes. I need expert piloting from all of you! Soon we will be out of here!" Fox said._

 _Suddenly, the vulpine heard a yelp of fear and he immediately said "Krystal! What's going on? Are you alright?" However, Fox was greeted with silence. Taking a calculated risk, he caused his Arwing to speed up and looped around a rock. Fox was greeted with an oncoming rush of enemies. "FOX!" Krystal's voice yelled in his mind._

 _"_ _Krystal! Where are you?" Fox answered._

 _"_ _FOX! HELP!"  
Fox McCloud, the lead pilot of the Star Fox team quickly looked around the swarming of the enemy fighters. Suddenly he saw a flaming plane in a nose dive towards Dager, plummeting through its atmosphere._

 _"_ _KRYSTAL!"_

General Pepper was still speaking "…After the ambush, the Star Fox team investigated the crash site of Krystal's Arwing. However, she was missing with only paw prints that didn't match hers leading away from the destruction. The team consisting of Fox, Falco and Slippy followed the trail and after a couple of weeks, couldn't find her."

 _Slippy sat on the rock panting. "It's no use Fox. She's gone."_

 _Fox didn't hear the toad but continued hacking his way through the shrubbery, determined to find the vixen._

 _Falco grabbed Fox and turned him around until the bird was staring at the tear stained cheeks of the vulpine. He knew that Fox was blaming himself for everything that has happened. "Fox! Slippy is right! We already spent 3 weeks looking for her. I know how much Krystal meant to you, but you need to expect the worst. She's gone. We need to go back to the Great Fox and figure out who did this and why!"_

 _Fox shook himself away from Falco's grasp and growled "I will not give up on her! She is a part of our crew and we need her! I… I ….. I need her!"_

 _Falco sighed and said, "I'm sorry about this buddy."_

 _Fox never saw the right hook coming and suddenly the world went black. After the vulpine crashed to the ground, Falco looked at Slippy sadly and said. "Ok, Slippy. Lets go home." He and the toad picked up Fox like he weighed nothing and started to walk back in the direction they came from._

The rest of the service was a blur to Fox and suddenly he found himself sitting alone in the chair holding a rose. The lights of the auditorium flickered. The vulpine wiped a tear away, stood up and walked to the desk with a pile of roses in front of Krystal's picture, placed down the rose and left the auditorium knowing that he would never see the love of his life again.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

 _Unknown Source_

The moonlight broke through the clouds showing the figure of a fortress on the cliffside. Behind the castle was a sheer drop down to the ocean. Two lizards were dragging a figure behind them as they made their way to the edge of the cliff. After taking a couple of minutes to rest, they picked up the body and threw him down into the sea. The body, a victim of long hours of grueling work under the hot sun and eventually Commander Ragas, disappeared beneath the lake. Back at the fortress; guards, illuminated by torches, patrolled the ramparts and kept a keen watch for any intruders. Everything was quiet, save for the sound of the crashing waves upon the cliff. The slaves slept peacefully, after a long and hard work under the evil gaze of Commander Ragas, their mind etched by the terrible fate that befell upon the unfortunate slave they called friend. In the courtyard, a lizard guard carrying a tray of stale bread and muddied water, walked towards the hole.

Zargos the cat sat huddling against the wall of the hole. His ears pricked up at a familiar sound and the warrior cat looked up and saw the silhouetted figure of the lizard. He stood up, his eyes straining to see what was happening. The grate groaned opened and the lizard remarked "Dinner time for the prisoner."

Zargos saw the food and the drink fall. He caught the food, but managed to get drenched by the muddied water. Pain overtook his head, as the lizard guard threw the cup down. Zargos groaned as he sat down, listening to the clank of the grate and the lizard guffawing as he scurried back into the solitude of the fortress. Feeling the rock hard bread, Zargos sighed and threw it off to the side, closed his eyes and rubbed his face as he sat with his back to the wall as he awaited for morning.

Dawn approached as two guards dragged the filthy rabbit behind them. The gate to the slave compound opened and the guards threw the beat up rabbit down on the ground in front of the others. The rabbit landed with a groan, as his scars reopened from the beating from Commander Ragas couple of days before.

"Let this be a lesson to all of you. Don't go up against the Commander or the Emperor! This rabbit is fortunate that he lives." one lizard guard said. The two guards gave the aged rabbit a swift kick each for good measure. They both stared at the slaves as the creatures shook with fear. The lizards laughed loudly, walked outside of the compound and locked the doors behind them.

Once the guards left, slaves swarmed the rabbit and gently carried him to his sleeping space. A friendly slave grabbed a cup of water from her dwindling rations and poured it slowly into the unconscious creature. The rabbit's eyes fluttered open as he drank the water and begged for more.

"We must take it slow elderly one" the slave said. As she poured more water into the rabbit's mouth, other slaves were working on applying medicinal herbs on his body and wrapping gauze around it. One slave had a special herb she stole from the Emperor that allowed for speedy recovery, so she applied it on the elderly rabbit's backside and stomach. The rabbit's breathing became more normal and soon he was conscious

The rabbit sighed and he became more aware of his surroundings. Animals stood around him, with concerned look displayed on their faces. The creature groaned as he sat up, but then found himself laying back down as the slave pushed him down. "No, Benjie you must rest before another long day today." She stood up and announced to the other slaves, "We have around an hour left or so, so lets' take advantage of the time and go back to sleep."

Benjie sat up in his bed and shook his head resolutely. "I have witnessed something of great importance!" he protested, "I know something that may affect our future here. It will be a huge risk, but it can be a huge reward also."

What Benjie announced brought surprised looks on the creatures' faces as the old, injured rabbit exclaimed:

"I think I found out our way out of here."

 _The main chamber of the fortress was brightened by the torches as the Emperor sat alone on his self-proclaimed throne. The black panther was in deep thought, stroking his chin and his tail deadly calm. Suddenly, his ears twitched and turned to a noise which has arisen from the back hallway._

 _"Guards! Guards!" the Emperor called. After waiting a couple of minutes, not one creature showed up to his beckoning. The Emperor growled with impatience and he stood up, claws springing to action. The panther stepped down from his throne and he walked through the brightly lit hallway. His single eye roved the hallway in search for the noise. In an instant, the torches went out, leaving the Emperor alone in the darkness. Whispering arose from the depths of the shadows, overtaking the the panther and causing him to feel one thing he hadn't felt in a long time: fear. The Emperor backed up, and turned to leave the way he came from. After walking a couple of feet, he banged his head into the wall, causing him to be dazed. His paws reached out and felt the wall where the door used to be._

 _"Well, well what do we have here?" an unfamiliar voice said._

 _The Emperor turned and noticed not one but two figures in the shadows. A cat and a fox appeared from the gloom with a determined look on their faces. The Emperor gasped, but no sound escaped from his lips. The unfamiliar fox stared at the Emperor, grinned and he dropped his gun "I won't be needing this" he said._

 _The cat behind him did the same, but instead stepped forward and pulled out a dagger. He moved quickly to attack the Emperor, but at the last moment, the fox stopped him. "I will take care of this" he said pulling out a staff. The staff was golden with a metal attachment to it on the bottom. The attachment was filled with blue liquid. Upon the top of the staff was a razor sharp spear. As the fox tested the weight, the Emperor could tell that he was a seasoned fighter and new how to handle such weapon._

 _The fox twirled the staff and remarked "I'm going to enjoy this." The determination was replaced with anger and the creature advanced forward._

 _The Emperor stood his ground, but at the fox's movement, his nerves failed him and he turned and fled down the hallway that magically appeared before him. The black panther took a chance and looked back, and noticed that the two adversaries were hot on his heels. The whispering became louder and the fog rose from the ground engulfing the panther and his chasers. The Emperor rounded corner and found himself in yet another dead end. He screamed and hit the wall with his paws hoping against hope that the wall would disapper. The terrified panther turned and saw his nightmare approaching him, the staff raised in the air._

 _"Mercy!" the panther croaked "Mercy please!"_

 _"There will be no mercy for you Emperor." the cat spoke out behind the fox "You ruined the lives of hundreds of slaves. You know what you are? A tyrant and a dictator. And do you know what we do with tyrants? WE…..PUT….THEM…..DOWN!"_

 _The Emperor got on his knees and begged "No please! You can have the fortress! The slaves! You can even have the crown! Please spare me!"_

 _The fox did not halt, but instead he made a sweeping motion with his staff and the Emperor screamed as the spear point made contact with his neck._

The mad panther sat up in his bed with a roar, sweat beading his forehead. The Emperor instinctively reached to his neck where the spear point made contact. He could still feel the pain from the attack as the Emperor rubbed his neck vigorously. The faces of the cat and the fox remained hauntingly in his mind. Commander Ragas rushed into the chamber at the sound of the roar as he flung the doors open exclaiming "My lord! My lord! Is something the matter?

The panther groaned as he shook his head willing the nightmare to disappear. "Nothing's wrong Commander. Just a bad dream is all." The Emperor rose out of his bed, stretched, walked to the window, and gingerly opened the curtain as he expected something to happen. Commander Ragas stared at the panther and his weird behavior. Then suddenly, a thought struck the Emperor. "How is our prisoner faring in the hole that we put him in?"

Commander Ragas snickered "A couple of more days my lord, then he'll only be bones. No one dares to defy the might of the Emperor and gets away with it!"

There were silence for a couple of seconds, then the Emperor turned and walked to the desk next to his bed. Commander Ragas could only see the panther's back as the Emperor picked up his goblet and poured out wine from a flask. The panther took a sip and remarked "The events that has happened a couple of days ago in the dining room interests me greatly. The cat, Zargos, why did he do that?"

The lizard Commander was confused "My lord? Do what?"

The Emperor turned to him "STOOD THERE! The rabbit fell off the table and he hardly glanced at him. Instead he kept eye contact on me! The Emperor! That puny slave should know better than to stare at me directly in the eye."

The commander laughed feebly "Mayhaps my lord, it's because he knew that the weak rabbit was fine."

"No… no that's not it… He was usurping my power. He was testing me to see how far I am willing to go. Ha! He thinks that he will win this game! No matter, I will break him. I will break his spirit and crush that warrior cat to the ground. Yes! I will also execute him in front of my slaves to show them the consequences of those who defies me. But, this cat shows some promise." The Emperor looked at the Commander then back away and continued "What if we could turn him to our side. Make him realize that his actions would be for nothing?"

"My lord, forgive my intrusion, but why don't we kill him now? Seeing that cat protecting the feeble rabbit shows that he is not to be reckoned with."

The Emperor turned and chuckled "My dear Commander. Where's the fun in that? No. I want to drive the fight out of his eyes and I want him to know that he is powerless and I will force him to kneel before me! Then the world will know the true might of the Emperor! Commander Ragas! Please fetch the prisoner!"

"My… my liege?" The Commander was confused momentarily "F-Fetch the prisoner? But why? He is rotting away down in the hole for defying you. He-"

"He is to be brought here. I am to test him. Have you not been listening Commander? Maybe I should strip you of your title and find another guard to be my take your place. So please, before I lose my patience Ragas, fetch the prisoner. And Ragas? This is your only and final warning. Remember I put you at the head of the Elite Guard and I am very capable of taking it away from you as well. Is that understood?"

Commander Ragas gulped as he knew precisely losing the title of commander meant as it led to two different ways to die: execution or slavery. Commander Ragas quaked at the thought of being thrown into the mix with the slaves because the creatures would kill him at the first chance they got. Commander Ragas was a killer and he killed many animals and a lot of those animals were the slaves loved ones. Nodding his head, the lizard Commander bowed and ran out of the room.

The Emperor chuckled as he awaited for the anticipated moment to arrive. _I will crush that cat's spirit! I will show him and everyone else who will DARE defy me, who the true Emperor is! But if I can turn him to my side, the better! I can use him to be my killing machine!_ The Emperor laughed wildly as he clapped his hands. Suddenly the dreams from the night before returned to haunt the panther. The cat and the fox filled his mind and the Emperor's jovial mood diminished as his sob got caught in his throat. The Emperor immediately ran outside and went to the first guard he saw. "Please arrange for double guards to be around me at all times. Outside the bed chambers, dining room and the throne room! I must be protected at all times!"

"Yes your majesty." the guard answered bowing.

The Emperor strolled back into his room and sat on his bed in deep thought as the sun continue to rise past dawn, its light shining the windows and into the bed chambers.

Silence reigned the slave compound then the entire room exploded in pandemonium, Men cheered wildly as women wept and the children stood around with confused looks on their faces. They hugged each other and Benjie the old rabbit found himself shaking paws and getting patted on the back. The wild party lasted for a couple of minutes and it became quiet once again.

"So, how are we getting outta here?" a small voice piped from the back of the crowd.

Murmurs of agreement came out of every creature's lips as they looked hopefully at the aged rabbit.

"If people will quiet down, then I will explain." the aged rabbit said.

Creatures immediately set to work, moving bedding and sat in a semi-circle around the rabbit, awaiting for him to resume speaking.

Once all the slaves settled down and the room was silent once again, Benjie the rabbit said "So, I know how to get out of here."

A red bird piped up "How? What are we going to do and when are we leaving?"

Benjie held a paw up as he waited for chatter to die down. "This is very difficult to say, but there is a slave. A cat as you may remember. Zargos was his name."

The slaves all stared at Benjie with confusion. Finally a young squirrel peered out from behind her parent's bushy tail and said "Zargos? The quiet cat?"

"Hush now dear. Let the nice rabbit do the talking." the babe's mother answered.

"Thank you. Zargos the cat. If you remembered him, he was the one who kept to himself while he worked. He was the one who took the brunt of my lashings from Commander Ragas-"

"Yes, yes we all remember him." an impatient mouse spoke up. "What does he have to do with us getting out of here?"

Every slave remembered the unfortunate cat. Zargos was the newest slave brought under the rule of the Emperor after the panther decided to acquire newer creatures by attacking his home planet of Raju. The fight was a losing fight for Zargos and his homeland. Although the people of Raju were warriors, they became overwhelmed by the sheer numbers that the Emperor possessed. Commander Ragas, himself personally chose the cat to be brought into slavery and decided to execute everybody else. Once brought to the Emperor's fortress, the cat kept to himself and worked as he was told. The warrior feline was the hardest working slave, as he would take the hardest task he would find. The slaves steered clear of the cat because they didn't know him and where he came from.

Benjie stared at the mouse and said "If no one will interrupt me, I will explain."

The mouse went quiet as the crowd hushed him. They turned to Benjie and awaited for his explanation.

"Anyways, as I was saying, when Commander Ragas had us unchained, we went and saw the Emperor. I was afraid for my life, but the cat stood there standing tall with a look in his eye. I knew in that instant, the cat was not something to be reckoned with. The Emperor wanted him to obey his orders, but Zargos stood there like a strong oak tree prevailing against the wind. Then in a clear voice he said that he believed in animals and that he would be rid of the dictator. Even better, when Ragas went to attack the cat with his tail whip, Zargos caught it and knocked his lights out!"

The audience gasped at the cat's boldness and the rabbit's story. "He's dead now." the young squirrel said sadly. "There's nothing we can do."

Benjie shook his head,"Actually, he's not dead. After that incident, the Emperor, surprised by the warrior cat's courage decided to punish him. So the he sent him to the hole and sent me to the dungeons with very little food and water."

"By golly! The rabbit's right!" a raccoon spoke up. "A couple of nights ago, I was asleep by the door and I remembered waking up to the sound of guards talking and the grate to the hole clanking shut! Zargos must be in that pit."

Cheers erupted once again as hope was ignited. But the baby squirrel could not resist speaking "But… But Mr. Benjie sir! If Zargos is in the hole, how can he get out? How can we escape if he can't get out?"

"Then we help get him out. First we must acquire anything that might serve as a weapon and we must figure out how to extract him without us losing our lives. We must also tell him of our plans. Maybe a short note to inform him that we will break him out."

Ideas varied from digging a hole in the side of the wall and escaping from the courtyard to building a ladder and having Zargos climb up and hide in the slave compound with them. Male creatures were cheering and the women were speaking with each other excitedly with their children hugging their legs.

Benjie settled down the crowd and proclaimed "Right now, we need to get ready for the day. Zargos is fine where he is and I promise you that I will figure out a way for him to be reunited with us and together we can defeat the evil once and for all!"

The rabbit's further words was drowned by the cheering slaves as the sun rose higher and higher in the sky beckoning the start of a new and hard day ahead.

Zargos the cat huddled against the wall of the hole. His stomach growled impatiently its desire for food has never been satisfied. The last few nights for the warrior cat was miserable. The heat was constantly unbearable and along with the heat: mosquitoes. Underneath Zargos' skin were bunch of bumps from the unstoppable attacks of the mosquitoes, in search of blood. But once the sun approached the horizon, the mosquitoes stopped their torment of the cat and left. Immediately after, Zargos took very little mud that resulted in the spilled water and applied to his body in a vain attempt to prevent the itching. As the last of the mud was applied, he laid back down and tried to go to sleep but soon gave up as the sun rose higher and higher in the sky. Instead he listened to the noise from the slaves working and guards giving orders. Zargos' ears pricked up at a familiar voice as it bellowed "Everyone! Move aside! Hey you! Yes you! Please move that slave or I'll move him myself!"

Commander Ragas looked through the grate and inside the hole and saw the declining figure of Zargos. He cracked a smile and sneered "How's the mighty cat doing today?"

Zargos stared at his tormentor, "Better than you will ever be when I'm done with you."

Ragas laughed "Done with me? The heat must have gone to your head! Done with me? Look at what you are saying cat!"

"Mark my words lizard! I'll be coming after you if it's the last thing I do. I will tear down this symbol of evil stone by stone if I have to."

Ragas was taken aback by the cat's audacity. Fear overtook the lizard's cold heart, but quickly dismissed it. "Guess what cat? You get to have fun today! Our mighty Emperor wants to see you again!"

There were silence for a couple of minutes. Then Zargos laughed "This is my lucky day indeed! The mighty Emperor wants to see a lowly prisoner? I must have made an impression upon him."

Commander Ragas stared at the warrior feline with impatience. "Yes cat! Your lucky day! With luck, after the Emperor is done with you, you'll be dead!"

"Thanks for the information _Commander_ ," Zargos spat "I guess I'll take as many as I can with me."

Commander Ragas exclaimed "You have quite the heart cat! I'll be sure to be present when the Emperor decides to execute you. Then you WILL DIE a thousand deaths by my claw. The Emperor personally promised me that I would have the honor of killing you and throwing your limp miserable body in the lake. "

Zargos laughed again "I promise you Commander this one thing! You will be dead before me. Also, you say that the Emperor wants to see me? What will stop me from NOT coming out of this miserable hole to see your precious pompous emperor?"

Commander Ragas turned and grabbed the small squirrel babe that was watching and held him over the grate in the view of the cat. The lizard's tail reached up and the barb point was in front of the babe's throat. The child started weeping silently with fear. "I will kill this babe if you don't follow orders and come out. I promise you Zargos! This child's blood will be on your paws!"

"Wow! Look at that! The mighty Commander Ragas, the leader of all Elite Guard, servant of our nincompoop of an Emperor needs to kill a slave, a child no less, for me to get out of this pit." Zargos bowed mockingly "I never knew that you would go so low as to kill baby slaves for creatures to do your bidding. But then again, that's all you do. You don't care for the goodwill of all animals and instead you go killing. Very well! For the young squirrel's sake, I shall do what you say and come out."

Commander Ragas tried to suppress his rage that was building in him, but to no avail. "Guards! Guards! Take the cat out of the hole and bring him to the middle of the courtyard! I want to make an example out of him."

Two lizard guards scrambled at his orders. One stepped forward holding a sturdy long rope that had a loop at the end of the rope. The second guard pulled out a key and unlocked the grate. Commander Ragas took the rope and threw it down into the pit. "Zargos! If you don't come up, I promise you I will kill this squirrel babe where he stands!"

All creatures, slaves and guards, were watching this exchange in silence. But this exchange caused the mother squirrel to scream and weep. Slaves withheld her and Benjie the rabbit hugged her closely to his body while murmuring comforting words in her ears. "Zargos knows what he is doing. He won't let this child die. Shh. Please stay quiet and watch! We must be ready."

Zargos looked at the grinning Commander and sighed. He stepped with one claw on the loop and at the signal from the commander, the slaves heaved and pulled at the rope until the warrior feline was on the ground and out of the hole. Onlookers gasped as they noticed the miserable changes that had occurred upon the cat. Couple of days without proper food, sleep and water reduced the muscular feline down to a shadow of his former self. Ribs were noticeable and dried mud fell painfully off his body. But as the slaves watched the cat, they knew that he hasn't lost one important thing. That thing would be vital for their success: fight. Benjie the rabbit smiled as he noticed the light of war in the cat's eyes and knew in that moment the feline would be important to their movement in taking down the Emperor.

Zargos stared at the sneering lizard in the eyes as he held his paws out. Commander Ragas stepped forward with handcuffs and fastened on the warrior cat's wrists. He turned and walked towards the double doors that acted as an entrance to the fortress. After being prodded painfully in the back by the guards, Zargos stepped forward. Once he did, pandemonium occurred among the slave onlookers.

A mouse turned and punched Benjie the rabbit in the face. Benjie fell backwards with a grunt and stood up with fury. The aged rabbit dove at the much younger mouse and both creatures wrestled on the ground as other fights appeared around the courtyard. Guards ran to several of slaves using butts of their blasters to try to break up the fights. During the confusion, the guards that stood with Zargos left to try to help with damage control. Meanwhile, Zargos felt a tiny paw pat his tail and the cat took a quick glance behind him and noticed the young squirrel that Commander Ragas was holding above the grate. The squirrel scampered around and like a flash of lightening placed something in the cat's paw and was gone. Zargos watched the fleeing squirrel run back into the compound and quickly unrolled the small scroll that the squirrel left him with one paw. The scroll read:

 _Z-_

 _Hang in there. The slaves have a plan to get you out of the hole. We believe in you._

 _B._

Zargos smiled as he read the note. He didn't know Benjie personally but he admired the rabbit's leadership. The rabbit had a certain characteristic and charm that made every creature that met him like him. He knew that the slaves were safe with Benjie. Suddenly, the warrior feline was shoved from the behind as the lizard guards left the fight and pushed him towards the doors. Zargos took a quick glance at the injured and exhausted rabbit sitting on the ground and gave him a small nod. Benjie held a paw over the swelling of his cheek, noticed the nod and smiled in return. Guards ushered the warrior cat inside the fortress as the slaves stood up, ready for another long day with meager rations as was their punishment according to Commander Ragas.

The Emperor sat on his throne staring at the painful figure of the cat. The once luscious fur of the feline was now covered with dirt, mud and caked with blood. Keeping to his word, Commander Ragas took the cat through the doors and into the fortress and started the torturing him. Zargos' paws were strapped to the table and the lizard Commander decided to use the barb on his tail as his device. The process took only a couple of minutes, but Zargos never cried out in fear or pain. With his refusal to cry, Ragas only became angrier and with his anger, the lashes became more severe. The barb would attach to the cat's backside and with each pull, detach from the skin as if Ragas was whipping him. After the final lash fell on the feline's back, Ragas stood panting at the site of the deeply injured cat.

"Cat. Why won't you just give in and die already? You are on this forsaken piece of land! No one dares to come to the fortress and challenge the Emperor. In fact, the only way to get away is jumping off the cliff!" Ragas laughed, "Well cat, if you can go ahead and do just that, you'll save us a lot of trouble!"

Zargos turned his head and stared at the lizard. "Because as long as I am breathing. As long as I am alive. As long as there are good creatures that roam the planets and galaxies, creatures who may come captured under the evil of the Emperor and you, I will destroy you first. And then, and then I will have my rest."

Commander Ragas let his tail fall on the floor in admiration of the cat's boldness. But the admiration was soon replaced with hate. "How can you destroy us cat?" the lizard snarled, "We can keep you in the hole until the day you die."

Zargos could only smile "Ah my dear lizard commander. Since you promised that I would die under your claw, would it make sense if I was to be taken out of the hole, THEN killed? Because Ragas, if you were to leave me in the hole, then all of your fun and hatred for me would only be taken away in an instant."

Commander Ragas was speechless then the lizard shook his head. "No Zargos. I will keep you in the hole and when you die, my hatred for you will be quenched. Nothing like a slow and painful death of starvation instead of a quick and painless death."

The warrior cat said nothing at that statement which only made the Commander smile with victory. The lizard commander detached the cat from the table, grabbed him around the neck using his tail and dragged him painfully inside the throne room and threw him in front of the Emperor. Zargos fell and hit the ground with a grunt, and experienced more pain. The Emperor stood up from his throne and poured himself a goblet of wine. The panther's one good eye watched the injured cat drag himself upright as he took a sip of wine.

"This wine is delicious cat. I bet you had nothing to drink besides water. Would you like some?" the Emperor baited.

Zargos the cat stood breathing heavily, staring at the Emperor in his one good eye. Zargos made a quick glance to the cup that the Emperor was holding then back at the panther. "This wine isn't poisonous if that's what you are thinking." the sly panther remarked.

Before Zargos could answer, the double doors opened and a couple of slaves marched in holding a small table and some platters with a metal lid covering it. "Ah! Here's our lunch! Just in time." the Emperor said. The slaves hurried around, set the table before the panther and placed down plates, silverware and even refilled his goblet, then rushed out of the room.

The Emperor motioned Zargos to sit before him. "Come. Sit! There is plenty of food for both of us. You must be hungry!"

Zargos stared at the Emperor for a couple of seconds, then moved to the chair in front of the table. The Emperor chuckled to himself from his throne. His plan was working and it was working splendidly. "Please eat to your heart's content. I can't have you wasting away."

Slaves went to work, opening the lids and showing the delicious smelling food. The scent wavered in the air and the warrior feline took a quick whiff. Zargos regretted his decision immediately because his stomach growled painfully. The cat had to refrain himself from diving and eating all the delicious food that was set before him. Silence overtook as the cat watched the Emperor cut his meat and eat while staring back at him.

Zargos finally spoke, "I apologize. But I can't eat these."

"What? Why not? You haven't eaten in the past couple of days. So I have brought food for you." The panther responded.

"Because if I eat your food off your table, then I am betraying my friends who are outside, working under the hot sun for meager rations that you offer them."

The Emperor laughed "Them? Those lowlifes? Who cares about them?" The Emperor pointed his knife at the cat "I admire you Zargos. I need more creatures of your caliber. Creatures who are brave, courageous and have natural tendencies to be a leader . I think you would be a perfect fit for the future Commander of my Elite Guards. Being a Commander would mean money, power, honor, respect, and fear from your subjects. No longer would you have to worry about being hungry or thirsty. Want respect? Then gain respect by instilling fear upon your subjects. Through fear you gain power and from power you get wealth from me! The Emperor!"

Zargos could only stare at the panther and sigh. "Don't you see Emperor? I was raised in the world of Raju and I grew up to a strict moral code. I was taught to defend myself and those weaker than me. I was raised to help those in need and rise up against evil creatures such as yourself. When your scum invaded my home, you ripped my loved ones away from me. I watched my family and my friends die at your hand. Though you weren't present to do the killing, your cowardly Commander did so. That lizard didn't give the good creatures of Raju a chance to protect themselves. No! He slaughtered them like nothing. The young, poor, elderly! It didn't matter to him. Men, women and the children, all gone at his claw." The cat laughed "Everyone gone. All gone. Except for one! Me. I promise you Emperor just like I promised Commander Ragas when he lashed out at me. I will go after you, one way or the other. Beware Emperor! Keep your single eye awake at night because you don't know when I will go after you! I promise you Emperor before the Commander and the good creatures outside that I will not rest until I am dancing upon your grave."

The Emperor stared at the sudden outburst from the warrior cat. Then with a calm demeanor, he stood up and said quietly "I thought you were the one. I had hopes for you Zargos, but apparently I was mistaken. You are weak! Always have been. Always will be. This is unfortunate because I was hoping you would seize the opportunity. Guards! Please take the prisoner and take him out of my sight! He can go back into the hole until he breaks and learns to serve me."

Two guards from the door advanced towards Zargos. "Alright cat. No funny business-"

Before the first guard could finish his sentence, Zargos grabbed the dinner knife and stabbed it behind him into the guard's leg. The first guard screamed in pain and clutched at his leg. In a smooth move, the feline kicked that lizard in the chest sending him flying a couple of feet. The second guard, after a couple of seconds of awe, sprang into action, aiming his gun at the cat. "Stay right there! I'm warning you!" he said.

Zargos stared at the lizard, then immediately grabbed a plate off the table and jumped sideways. In midair, the cat flung the plate sending spinning towards the unsuspecting guard. The lizard barely registered the action as the plate made contact with his skull and he went crashing onto the ground unconscious. The cat rolled onto the ground and got up, his claws springing into action. The entire throne room was silent except the groaning of the first lizard guard with the knife still in his leg. Commander Ragas advanced towards the cat, but was stopped by the Emperor. Suddenly, the Emperor laughed loudly, tears rolled down his face. Once the adrenaline rush calmed down, Zargos was aware of pain from the Commander's lashings and with sheer will, managed not to pass out.

The Emperor continued laughing. "I knew you have it! You have the killer instinct! Oh this is joyous indeed!" The mad panther's laughter was over as quick as it started. "Don't worry Zargos. I will break you. I will break you before the slaves you call friends. You will be so crushed that you will have nothing to live for. Don't worry Zargos, I will keep your friends alive long enough to watch you suffer. GUARDS! Please take the prisoner away and put him back into the hole. This time handcuff him and stay alert!"

More guards walked into the throne room and handcuffed Zargos. As he was led out of the room, the Emperor mockingly waved goodbye. _That cat will be useful for me. I need to tame him and turn him into a killing machine. Once that happens and when he serves me, I will be unstoppable!_ The Emperor laughed loudly at his thought, then the laughter died down to a chuckle as he savored the moment for the cat to be broken under his will.

Once Zargos stepped outside, the hot sun beat down upon his body. The cat's pores started to open up and perspire. The sun's heat did nothing to help relieve the pain that Commander Ragas inflicted nor did it help his stomach stop growling and his thirst quenched. Slaves were hard at work doing numerous of chores: cleaning, moving rocks, fishing at the stream under the careful eyes of the guards, and even growing food out in the fields in front of the fortress. Zargos was being pushed by the guards as they hurried him along, in fear that another fight among the slaves would break out again at the sight of the warrior cat.

Benjie the rabbit was carrying a basket of small miscellaneous items from his chores. As he was walking, the aged rabbit noticed that Zargos happened to be crossing at the same point with him. Preparing himself, the rabbit fished a small scroll out of his basket and walked with an increasing pace towards the cat. As he had expected, the rabbit collided Zargos sending both creatures down into the ground. In the confusion, Zargos felt the small scroll being pressed into his paw and the feline held on tight.

"Sirs, I'm so sorry sirs. Please forgive me. I wasn't paying attention and I accidentally tripped over a rock." Benjie stammered.

The lizard guards were upon the rabbit, kicking and beating him with the butts of their blasters. Benjie covered his head and huddled against the ground in a vain attempt to guard himself from being injured. After a couple of minutes of being beat, the guards had their fun. They turned and shoved the cat ahead of them, pointing at the hole.

Zargos moved up ahead and casted quick glance behind him at the figure of the rabbit. Already, several of slaves were tending to him. They quickly picked him up and with their help, Benjie hobbled to the slave compounds in hope that the guards would leave him alone. When Zargos and the guards arrived at the hole, one guard uncuffed the cat while the other opened the grate leading to the bottom of the pit. The lizards then shoved the warrior cat with all of their might and he fell into the pit. Once the guards knew that the feline was safely at the bottom of the pit, they closed the grate and left.

Zargos groaned loudly as his injuries flared up once again. The cat opened his eyes and remembering the scroll in his hand, he opened and the small message read:

 _Z-_

 _Check under the rock that we threw down. Some are medicinal and others are for your hunger and thirst. Use them wisely! The slaves will tell you of our plans. Whatever you do, don't lose hope!_

 _B._

The cat smiled and found the rock that the note spoke of. Underneath the rock, the feline found a pouch full of different kinds of medicinal herbs. Muttering thanks to Benjie and the rest of the slaves, Zargos gratefully and slowly applied the medicine on his body and awaited the healing process. He trusted the rabbit and his wisdom. _Benjie you sly rabbit! Thank you so much for these items. Once I get out of this hole, I promise you I will put a stop to the Emperor and the Commander! Soon, they will be no more!_.

The sun quickly streaked across the sky and started to set. At the same time, the moon rose up and the stars twinkled above. The temperature cooled down significantly since there were no harsh winds to carry the heat of the daytime sun. Slaves packed up their chores and accepted their meager rations of food and drink from their taskmasters. Commander Ragas strolled among the courtyard and watched the slaves hurrying to their compounds as they did not want to anger the crazed lizard. As the moon rose higher and higher into the night sky, everything was peaceful. The waves that crashed against the cliffs became muted as the winds calmed down. Slaves inside the compound were asleep, escaping the real world and chasing down their vivid imaginations. Benjie the rabbit was the only creature awake as he plotted on how to get the cat to escape the hole and how to defeat the Emperor once and for all. Commander Ragas was inside his bed, his tail flicking left and right as he dreamt of doing his favorite hobby: torturing slaves and other creatures. The Emperor stood outside of his window and watched the ripples of the lake silently hit the cliff. He pondered of the day events and finally retired to bed. After a couple of minutes, the panther was fast asleep, only to be haunted in his dreams once again by two creatures that he could never seem to escape: the smiling of the cat and the determination of the fox.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

 _The Lylat System_

As dawn approached, the darkness ran away as light invaded their precious space. Flowers turned and bloomed as they welcomed the warmth and light. A breeze went through the air, carrying with them a fresh start of a new day. As the sun broke through the horizon and started climbing in the sky, residents of Corneria stirred and woke up. Children ran outside laughing and playing, ready to tackle the new day. Parents smiled as they watched their babes climb trees and go on swings at the park. Meanwhile, the roof of the hangar owned by the Cornerian Defense Force opened and in view were the four Arwings. The engines hummed and the planes hovered, causing the craft to rise upwards. After the first plane was clear of the roof, it shot away and out towards space, the other three in pursuit.

Light turned into dark as the four Arwings battled Corneria's gravitational pull. The powerful planes penetrated the atmosphere and went for their sole destination of the Great Fox. Stars blazed, its powerful lights acting as torches in the darkness. The Great Fox grew bigger and bigger as the Arwings approached the ship. After being told that they were clear to land, the Arwings entered the Great Fox one by one. When the Arwings finished attaching themselves to the hangar, the cockpit opened and the vulpine jumped out, landing on the ground feet first.

Fox McCloud surveyed the scene of the hangar, feeling relieved that he was finally on familiar territory once again. Immediately, exhaustion overtook him and Fox almost collapsed onto the hangar's floor. The past couple of days were very taxing and throughout the past two days, the vulpine cried more than he had ever had in his life. There to only comfort him on the planet of Corneria were his friends and King Tricky. But even though he was surrounded by his favorite people, Fox still felt an emptiness that only one creature could fill: Krystal.

"I don't know about you guys, but this old hare is ready to hit the sack!" Peppy announced as he walked past the vulpine.

Falco laughed and caught up to the old hare, "Gramps! You already need your nap? It's barely 10'o clock… in the morning!"

"Well, I'm not as spry as you younglings are these days." Peppy retorted. "Just wait until you get to my age and you'll know what I am talking about."

Falco chuckled and gently punched the hare in the shoulder. "That's what I am afraid of gramps. I don't ever want to get old and ugly like you!"

"Hey! Who are you calling ugly?" Peppy roared. "Have you seen yourself Falco? You look like a beetle in a blender!"

"You did not just say that! You look like a sunburned hippo!"

"Wobbling featherface!"

"Fat carrotnose!"

Fox cracked a smile as he listened to Falco and Peppy engage in an insulting battle. Slippy laughed next to him and said "Look at those two go. I think I should break them up before they actually start fighting." the short toad looked at the vulpine and continued "But if that did happen, I've got my money on Peppy. Sure he's old and slow, but I think that he could take down that pea-brained for a bird easy!"

"Oh I don't doubt that Slippy! Falco is looking for trouble and he will definitely receive some!"

"Speaking of trouble, I think Peppy is about to kill him right now. I'm going to stop them before he does that!

The toad ran ahead of Fox and managed to get between the bird and the hare. The insulting battle got so heated that Peppy was preparing to dive at the bird. Fortunately, the toad intervened and managed to restrain the old hare.

"Come on guys! We're all friends here!" Slippy yelled. Then the toad lowered his voice to a whisper. "Can we think of Fox and the fact that we _finished Krystal's service TWO DAYS AGO?"_

Falco and Peppy stopped arguing and looked at the short toad. "Yes. I guess you are right. Sorry Peppy," Falco mumbled.

Peppy nodded in acknowledgement and winked "It's all fun and games right? Apology accepted. I must say that you are lucky that Slippy intervened when I was winning."

The old hare laughed as he left the hangar leaving behind an indignant Falco. But finally, the blue bird smiled and said "I'll give him that one. But he'd better watch out! I'll be coming for him."  
"Yes, but please for Fox's sake, don't do it in the next few days. Let him heal."

Falco nodded. "You're right Slippy. Hey, I'm hungry. Want to come to the kitchen with me?"

The toad looked back at the vulpine. Fox was staring at the pillar in the corner of the hanger. Understanding what he was doing, Slippy answered "Sure Falco, I could use some food." The toad and the bird left the hangar, leaving Fox alone.

Fox McCloud was staring fixedly on the pillar. He barely registered the fact that his friends left the room and that he was all alone. The hangar was huge, with all four Arwings next to each other, side by side, ready for launch. Fox's Arwing was a simple Arwing with the Star Fox mercenary logo imprinted on it. The wings were tipped blue and gold to show that he was the leader. Next to Fox's Arwing was Falco's. The blue bird loved his plane and he showed it by cleaning and repairing it once a week. The result of Falco's affection was a shiny and sleek Arwing since his philosophy was to never fight with a dirty weapon or equipment. Next to Falco's was Slippy's Arwing. Slippy's plane was the same make and style of Fox's instead of a Star Fox mercenary logo, it had a face of a toad with the initials WD which showed Slippy's status. Since Slippy loved gadgets and inventions, his Arwing was outfitted with some tools that the other members of the Star Fox crew did not have access to. Peppy's Arwing hung next to Slippy's and it presented the Star Fox logo, but the wings were solid gold which represented Peppy's years of service and it proved that he retired from the dogfight.

Fox walked past all the Arwings until he arrived to an empty space. The space was reserved for Krystal, but with her Arwing destroyed, the Star Fox team had nothing to salvage and repair. After pausing for a moment, the vulpine continued his walk until he found what he was looking for. Fox approached the pillar and on the pillar was a box with numbers on it. After pondering for a couple of minutes, he punched some numbers in it. A beeping noise could be heard and a hidden door on the pillar opened, revealing the one item that he cherished the most.  
***************************

Falco Lombardi and Slippy Toad were in the kitchen, grabbing food to satisfy their hunger. Slippy poured himself a bowl of his favorite cereal, while Falco was chowing down on the food of his choice: a sandwich with mango chutney. Between each bite, Slippy spoke "So Falco, what do _grumf_ you think _smack_ we are going to do now? I mean, with Krystal gone and all?"

"I don't know Slippy, I really don't. I just hope that Fox heals quickly because we need him right now. We just don't have sufficient funds to support to keep this giant junk we call ship."

Slippy looked offended, "But who knows how long that will be? Each creature goes through grief differently."

Falco sighed, "Also, not to add the fact that Krystal means the world to him. I just wish I could do something. I hate seeing him like that."

"The best thing we can do right now," Slippy concluded, "Is to be there for him."

"Like we _can't_ be there for him?" Falco laughed, "We are on the Great Fox in the middle of nowhere after all."

Slippy cracked a smile as he finished his cereal "You know what I mean bird brain."

"We are not doing that again." Falco warned, "But if you push, beware. I will win."

Slippy put his bowl in the sink. "Alright, alright. I believe you." The toad turned and walked away to the hall talking behind him, "If you need me Falco, I'll be in my room working on some inventions."

"Be sure to not blow up the ship!" Falco called

"Yeah yeah yeah." was the response.

Falco smiled at the memory of Slippy's last attempt at making a weapon. He accidentally crossed the wrong wires and it resulted in the overheating discharge of the weapon. It created a hole in the ship in which the team had to repair with their low funds. The accident happened just before the 'rescue gone wrong' mission and it was this realization that caused Falco to stop smiling.

The blue bird walked out of the kitchen and through the hallway, sandwich in hand. He looked around trying to decide what he wanted to do. _Sleep or TV, sleep or TV?_ Falco thought, _Or Fox? I don't have anything else to do, so I might just check in on him._ _I hate seeing my best friend like this. What we really need right now is a job. Anything to take his mind off Krystal._ The bird nodded at his decision, took another bite out of his sandwich and walked in the direction of the hangar. Little did Falco know, his wish would come true.

Fox McCloud stared at the secret space in the pillar, his jaw dropping with shock and amazement. _It's still here. I can't believe it. I thought that she discarded or sold it all those years ago._ The vulpine stood there awestruck until he decided to take it out. Fox grabbed the item by the leather bound hilt in the middle, and took it out of the pillar. He then walked down the aisle of the hangar, holding it gingerly like he feared that he would break it. After walking halfway down the hangar, the vulpine stopped and held the item with one paw. On impulse, Fox pressed the small button in the middle of the hilt, and the item sprang into full size.

The vulpine gasped with wonder. He still wouldn't get over the beauty and the power of the item he held in two hands. It was a staff, and a beautiful one at that. The staff was a head taller than him, and made of gold. At the tip was a razor sharp spear head, capable of killing an enemy with one thrust or stroke. At the bottom of the staff was an empty chamber, but Fox knew that it could be filled with magic from the gemstones. In the Lylat System, gemstones are extremely rare, but Dinosaur Planet, home to King Tricky, harbored the majority of the stones. Along the side of the staff, was an inscription written in a language that Fox didn't understand. But he remembered the time when he asked the owner of the staff what the inscription meant and Krystal answered that if the person using the staff has a good heart, then the staff would reach its full potential for the wielder. While holding one of Krystal's precious possession, he immediately thought back to the time he first used it and marveled at its power.

 _Fox landed his Arwing in the clearing of the field and jumped out. He surveyed the scene before him and noticed beauty everywhere. Flowers were in season and blooming. Trees produced various kinds of fruits and nuts. A small waterfall could be heard and a stream ran across the grass before him. But the scene that struck him the most were the dinosaurs. They were marvelous! The dinosaurs that he saw had thick scales, capable of protecting them from danger. Their tail was long, and it had razor sharp spikes on it. One dinosaur looked up lazily from the grass he was eating and started to walk to the vulpine. Fox knew that he was sent to visit Dinosaur Planet, and help free it from a threat, but he didn't know what the threat was. After receiving orders from General Pepper, Fox set out without a weapon. After complaining to the distinguished General, Fox realized that his tendency of 'shoot first and ask questions later' would not be useful at the planet, so he reluctantly agreed to leave it back on the Great Fox._

 _While standing on the clearing in front of the Arwing, the dinosaur that noticed Fox approached him. The dinosaur is known as a Thorntail and his family is part of the EarthWalker tribe._

 _"_ _Welcome to Dinosaur Planet." the Thorntail spoke, "Home to all different kinds of dinosaurs and our life here is wonderful! Please help yourself to our planet and enjoy it!" After speaking he looked around and leaned in closer, and spoke only in a whisper, "Please help us! Our planet is under a siege from General Scales and his army! We can't fight them off because we are peaceful creatures. Also their numbers and might easily overcame us. They have captured Queen EarthWalker and is holding her in the throne room." the Thorntail pointed with his tail in the direction of the room. Fox saw a huge stone-like fortress and the Thorntail nodded. "That's where the Queen is being held. Please help us!"_

 _Fox nodded in agreement. "Don't worry. I will do everything in my power to help you."_

 _"_ _Beware! There are soldiers roaming around. You'd do the best keeping your distance away from them."_

 _Fox looked at the dinosaur and smiled. "Don't worry. I can take care of myself you know? I have seen my fair share of combat."_

 _The Thorntail bowed his head as he backed up. "I hope you enjoy your stay here. Don't forget that you must pay a tax for every night you stay here!"_

 _Fox waved goodbye at the dinosaur then started on his mission. First, he needed to get close to the fortress to see how impenetrable it was. The vulpine started off on a jog and ran alongside the creek, realizing that there were no soldiers near him._ That dinosaur must be crazy or today is my lucky day! _Fox thought. As he got nearer and nearer to the fortress, the vulpine could not help but gasp at the size and beauty of it all._

 _The door to the stone fortress were inlayed with jewels and it had an engraving with Dino language on it. It also depicted pictures of the history of the EarthWalker clan and how they came to power. The fortress was a part of the mountain itself and Fox realized that it was the best defensive position because attackers would have no other way to go in._ So how did they catch Queen EarthWalker, _the vulpine thought_ , Unless General Scales caught her and the EarthWalker tribe by surprise. This must have been a planned attack, but it was so perfectly placed that no dinosaur were expecting it. This is already hard enough because now I have to figure out how to break the Queen out. _Fox shook his head as he looked around, hope against hope, that there would be a way to enter the fort._

 _After spending half an hour observing every possible way, Fox gave up._ There is no way I can get in besides the door! The door by itself is a suicide mission! _The vulpine backed up, shaking his head dejectedly. Fox decided to go back to his Arwing to notify General Pepper of his failure. As the vulpine walked, an object sticking out of the ground caught his attention. Fox turned and decided to investigate. After walking couple of hundred feet, he came upon trees set in a circle around a dirt patch. In the patch, Fox noticed, was a staff, with the spear point sticking upright._

 _After taking a couple of seconds to pick up the staff, Fox marveled at the beauty and the power of the staff. The balance was perfect and it felt right in his hands. After a couple of practice twirls and stabs, Fox felt that he had used the staff for years. The vulpine then noticed a small button on the hilt and he pressed it. The staff shrank into a smaller version, and Fox realized that it could be used as a knife if he ever needed to be stealthy._

 _Putting the staff back in his backpack, Fox turned back and ran towards the stone fortress, his courage increasing with every step that he took. His heart felt light and the vulpine felt more determined than ever to succeed in that specific part of the mission. When arriving in the outside courtyard of the fortress, Fox stood before the door and looked around._ It's quiet _the vulpine thought_ , too quiet. _Fox decided to take out the staff, and he pressed the button. The staff shot to its full length, glowing with power and light._

 _The vulpine looked at the staff and back at the door. Fox then walked to the door and knocked on it with the butt end of the staff. The knocks echoed loudly into the rapidly descending day. Fox backed up, keeping his eyes on the door and then he stood rooted in his place. Finally, the door opened and a mean looking dinosaur walked through._

 _Upon seeing Fox ready with the staff, the dinosaur gave a shout of alarm. The shout drew five more equally mean dinosaurs, all outfitted with some armor and handmade clubs with spikes on it._

 _"_ _There's the intruder! Take him in and show him what we do with an enemy of General Scales!" the first dinosaur called._

 _The soldiers for General Scales quickly surrounded Fox. "Throw down your weapon! We have you surrounded!" the dinosaur called. Fox did nothing but smile. "I'm warning you! Comply or we will have to force you._

 _Finally Fox spoke, "I'd like to see you try."_

 _With that statement, the mayhem of battle began. The dinosaur directly behind Fox ran towards him, bellowing with anger and his club was raised. At the last possible moment, Fox sidestepped and slammed the butt of the staff into his stomach, causing the dinosaur fall onto his knees. The vulpine pivoted and smashed his knee into the dinosaur's face, knocking his tooth out and he fell over unconscious. A second dinosaur ran and attempted to swing his club at Fox. Fox rolled away as the dinosaur thundered past and Fox stabbed with the spear point into the dinosaur's leg._

 _Feeling pain overtake his leg, the dinosaur howled with anger and turned back to Fox, anger in his eyes. He then struck out at the vulpine with an overhead chop, but Fox anticipated the movement and backed up quickly. The club hit the ground and surprise overtook the dinosaur's face and he grunted with confusion. Fox took advantage of the situation and slayed his enemy with only one jab of his spear._

 _The remaining dinosaurs went silent when they realized that one was dead and the other on the verge to follow his comrade. The last four dinosaurs looked at each other, then at the grinning vulpine. "ATTACK!" was the cry and all four dinosaurs rushed at Fox and Fox stood his ground. After a couple of seconds judging the distance, Fox decided it was time to act. He ran towards the first dinosaur and at the last second, jabbed the spear point into the ground and using the staff as a catapult, launched himself over the first dinosaur. The vulpine sailed through the air, landed on the ground rolling and stabbed the second dinosaur, killing him. Fox pulled his staff out of the carcass and spun, the butt of the staff slamming against the third dinosaur in the head, knocking him out. Hearing the roars of anger, Fox noticed the first and fourth dinosaur rushing him from both sides and the vulpine jumped out of the way, slicing the first dinosaur in the back while killing the fourth dinosaur by cracking his skull with the butt of his staff._

 _The battle was over and Fox stood panting, feeling amazed at what he could do with the staff. The first dinosaur was still moaning in pain and the vulpine approached him._

 _"_ _The queen? Where is she?" Fox asked_

 _"_ _If I tell you, will you spare me?" the dinosaur asked._

 _"_ _I will spare you. You have my word." Fox answered._

 _"_ _She's in the throne room. We attacked the EarthWalkers and they were taken unawares. We took the Queen and locked her in the throne room." The dinosaur pointed at the door where they came out of. "She's through there. There's no one else. We all came out to deal with you. Spare me please!" the dinosaur begged._

 _"_ _I promised you." the vulpine answered. After seeing the dinosaur breathe a sigh of relief, Fox destroyed his hope with one simple statement "But the Thorntails didn't promise anything."_

 _Fear overtook the dinosaur and he begged, "Please sir! Have mercy! I told you everything that has happened. I showed you where the Queen was being held!"_

 _Anger overtook Fox and he yelled "Did you show mercy to all the creatures that you killed? Did you? Lives were lost when you came to the EarthWalker's homeland and deemed that you would reign them! You kill every creature that opposed you and you have the nerve to ask me for mercy?" Fox scoffed "You've gone and ruined my day."_

 _The vulpine grabbed the injured dinosaur and pulled him by the neck. There were four Thorntails standing together that had watched the fight in the distance. Their confusion turned to surprise when Fox threw the dinosaur down on the ground. "He's all yours." Fox told them. The vulpine turned and walked away from the unfortunate dinosaur as the four tails fell simultaneously, silencing him forever._

Fox smiled as he regarded the item with affection. It was an important connection to Krystal, and now that he found the staff once again, Fox knew that he would never lose that link. _I wonder if I still got it_ the vulpine thought. After feeling the weight and the balance again, he got in a fighting stance, holding the spear towards the imaginary enemy. Fox tried a series of combos, the spear landing in the exact places he wanted with perfection. Fox spun, jumped and jabbed downwards with the staff. After accomplishing the feat, he rolled on the ground and stood up. Sweat started beading on his forehead and the vulpine started spinning the staff. Fox spun the staff faster and faster until it was a blur and finally he stopped spinning it and tucked the staff behind his back with one paw. Fox stood panting, _I still got it_ he thought.

The vulpine jumped as he heard clapping. He looked back and saw Falco leaning on the doorway with a sandwich in hand. Falco smiled and pointed at the staff, "Brings back good memories?"

"Yeah. I actually miss this weapon. It just gives you a sense of power and control you know? A gun, you just use to aim and shoot, but with this staff, you feel invincible and you want to BE in the combat."

"I can't say that I know the feeling." Falco responded. "Although I remember the last time you had the staff. I just saved your hide from Andross."

"I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND how Andross came back to life!" Fox exclaimed, "I think that if I kill somebody one time, they should stay dead."

Falco chuckled "There are some things in this galaxy we don't know about. But I do know one thing for sure, Andross is definitely dead. That bomb blew him to smithereens. The party after that was awesome. It was also the day I rejoined you."

Fox smiled at the memory, "And it was also the day that—"

"You met Krystal." Falco finished. "Look Fox, I truly am sorry for your loss. Again, I know how much Krystal meant to you. But there is one thing that we need to do, and that is figuring out who did this and WHY!"

Fox sighed, "You're right! But we already tried Falco! Whoever it was, they are gone! Any trace of them gone! I don't even know where we can start."

Falco looked at his best friend sadly, "Neither do I buddy, neither do I."

 _Somewhere else in the Lylat System_

Wolf O'Donnell sat in his Wolfen, controlling his craft as he flew through space. Behind him was Leon Powalski, a shifty eyed chameleon and Panther Caruso, a creature whose name matched specie. Wolf's eyepatch covered a scar that he gained from a dogfight battle with Fox McCloud and he still held a grudge against the vulpine. Although they had butted heads numerous of times in the past, Wolf fighting Fox, Leon against Falco and Panther rivaled Krystal, Wolf grew respect for the Star Fox team. He knew that Fox McCloud served various of jobs and that he needed to do what the job demanded of him, but when it came to it, Fox would be willing to sacrifice his life when the entire Lylat System would be in danger.

When the Aparoid War happened, the Lylat System would have been destroyed if it weren't for Wolf and his crew of Star Wolf. His team of mercenaries and the Star Fox team put aside their years' worth of rivalry and joined together to defeat the Aparoid Queen. Wolf grunted at the memory. _I even let that stupid scrawny creature of a fox ON MY PLANE!_ The leader of Star Wolf shuddered at the thought of his enemy and rival on his own Wolfen. Immediately after destroying the Aparoid Queen, the Star Fox and Star Wolf teams went their separate ways and they haven't seen each other ever since.

Wolf flew his Wolfen in silence as his two other crew followed him. Finally, the comms channel crackled and Leon's voice could be heard:

"Wolf? Where are we going?"

"I told you Leon! We have a job, so we are going to do the job!"

"But Wolf! Who gave us the job? What IS the job? When was the last time we took an anonymous job from an anonymous source?" the chameleon protested.

"Leon's got a point Wolf." Panther injected "I know that we have dealt with shady creatures before, but since when have we sunk this low?"

"What do you mean we sunk this low?" Wolf snarled. "Don't go soft on me Panther! I let you on my crew and I can easily take you out also! Just stay quiet and follow my orders!"

Panther went silent as Leon snickered quietly in the background. The three Wolfens flew through space. Minutes dragged into an hour and Wolf finally found what he was looking for: a space station. Wolf piloted his Wolfen closer and closer until he heard the comms static and a voice speak through. "Who are you and state your business!"

"Condor of the _Eagle's Revenge_ along with Thrain and Jax. We are here to refill on our fuel and purchase some supplies. Do we have permission to come aboard?"

"You are clear to come aboard. Go into Hangar D, around the back and please be careful! We can't afford another accident in the station." the voice sounded annoyed.

Once the voice disappeared, Panther asked "Wolf, why did you give out fake names?"

"Panther! You need to use that brain of yours! We need fake names to protect our identities" Wolf answered.

"But why? Oh." Panther said when realization dawned on him. "Secret names for a secret job. Har har har! I love this."

Wolf snarled with annoyance. _Why am I with these idiots_ he thought.

The three Wolfens flew around the station and Wolf found the hangar that the voice wanted him and Star Wolf to land. Carefully the three pilots navigated their Wolfens inside the small space of the hangar and turned around so the planes would be ready for launch in a hurry. Wolf turned off his engine and climbed out of his plane and landed on the ground. He was a site to behold in his blue chest armor and black pants. Around his waist were two different guns for Wolf preferred to do combat with more weapons than less. His face showed age, as his fur was turning from the silver of his youth to greyish white. Wolf snorted and motioned for the rest of his crew to follow him.

Leon Powalski walked in step next to Wolf. Wolf found Leon in a bar on the planet Venom and saw how he handled himself. Leon engaged in a bar fight against 4 other creatures and emerged victorious. Wolf knew that he wanted the battle-hardened chameleon on his side, so he wasted no time in recruiting him. Leon was the original member of Star Wolf and has stuck with Wolf for years, and the chameleon loved his rivalry against Falco Lombardi. Leon hated Falco's sarcasm and wit and Leon's rivalry with Falco only grew every time Falco beat him. Although he hated losing, Leon still harbored a secret enjoyment for his fights against the blue bird. Leon wore a purple piece of armor that covered his entire body, including his tail. The chameleon showed a scar on his cheek which was a result of a battle against Falco in which he lost. Leon looked at Panther, and offered him a gun. Panther shook his head and sprung one claw showing Leon that he enjoyed being close and personal.

Panther Caruso, a dark purple furred panther, walked next to Leon and stopped with the team when they approached the door. Panther wore a pilot suit that gave him enough flexibility to jump and dodge at great speeds. His reaction time was legendary and it was rumored that Panther could dodge a rapidly firing blaster in combat. Wolf hired Panther to join his crew, replacing the disgraced Pigma Dengar and Andrew Oikonny, the nephew of Andross. Once meeting the Star Fox team, Panther Caruso was overtaken by Krystal's beauty and became infatuated with the graceful vixen. But when Krystal kept turning down his advances, Panther's rivalry with her increased because he knew that Fox was in play. Although Panther and Krystal fought against each other, Panther respected her skills as a pilot, but hated her decision to remain with the Star Fox team. After the Aparoid War, Panther offered a better paying job to the vixen, but Krystal turned it down. Even though she didn't say, Panther knew that she wanted to be with Fox. Panther leaned against the wall and asked: "Do you want to explain why we are here Wolf?"

"Keep your flubbing tongue still, or I will cut it out of you!" Wolf snarled.

Panther looked at Leon and shrugged. It wasn't new that Wolf would threaten physical harm on him. He respected Wolf, but still felt a bit resentment towards him because Panther felt that Wolf is becoming incapable of leading the team due to his age.

After opening the door, Wolf, Leon and Panther stepped into the hallway. When the door closed, Wolf told the crew members: "Alright, we need to be in and out of this place. We are looking for a storage room and in the room would be a briefcase. We need to take whatever is out of the briefcase and deliver it to our anonymous source."

"Just like that?" Leon asked.

"Just like that." Wolf answered,

"I don't feel like this is a good idea…." Panther started

"The anonymous source is offering us 50 million credits to do this job"

"Which is why we are taking this job." Panther finished.

Wolf cracked a smile. He knew that besides his love for Krystal, Panther had another love and that was money. The three creatures walked down the hallway and found themselves in the main area of the space station. When they looked up, the station was so vast that they couldn't see the ceiling, and when the team looked down, it was the same. Animals of all kinds were busy, rushing to and fro while talking on their holographic phones and refueling their planes. Panther looked around and sighed "Ok Wolf, what's the plan? How are we going to do this?"

Before Wolf could answer Leon spoke up "When I was younger," the chameleon hissed "I worked in a station like this. It was more… violent mind you." The chameleon laughed at the memory, "but the security office always had a map of the station."

"See Panther? At least one member of this crew is actually using his brain. That's a good idea. Can you take us to the security room Leon?" Wolf asked as he felt for his gun. He loved using violence and force to take what he wanted, but Wolf knew that with a mission like this, he would need to restrain his trigger happiness.

Leon chuckled "Today is your lucky day Wolfie!"

Ignoring the warning growl that erupted from Wolf O'Donnell, Leon walked in the direction that they were heading, with Panther following him. Wolf shook his head angrily, still stung by the lack of respect from the chameleon, and walked after the two creatures.

After taking several twists and turns and going on different levels, Wolf was losing his patience. Before he could explode with fury on the chameleon, Leon turned into a small hallway and walked a couple of yards and finally stopped in front of a door. "Here we are!" the chameleon whispered. "The security room."

Panther excitedly reached for the door knob, but his wrist was grabbed by Wolf. Looking at the leader in confusion, Wolf smiled and pointed upwards. Panther looked up, saw a camera and noticed that if he had opened the door, the alarm would have gone off and the Star Wolf team would have been surrounded by security in an instant. "How are we going to get in?" Panther whispered.

"We could always shoot the door in and fight our way out." Leon answered.

"And kill ourselves in the process? No, Leon. That is an idiotic idea." Panther scoffed.

Leon and Panther engaged into an argument while Wolf pondered his many options and realized that there was one option that would be the easiest. He took Panther by the arm and said to Leon, "Wait here. We'll be right back."

Leon Powalski nodded nervously. Wolf and Panther disappeared around the corner. Few minutes felt like hours to the chameleon and finally Wolf reappeared from the corner. As he approached the lizard, Leon couldn't help but ask "Where's Panther? What happened to him?"

Wolf smiled and said, "There are ventilation shafts everywhere. The idiot workers here didn't think about putting alarms on the shafts because they figured 'hey, no one will come attacking us from the ventilation shafts!' So that's where Panther is right now."

"So. You mean he's in the security room?"

"Precisely." Wolf answered.

The two creatures heard a yell and a grunt. Then the door opened slowly revealing Panther's smiling face. The security guard who was monitoring the station via cameras was unconscious. Wolf looked at Panther and instructed him to put the guard in the closet and leave him there. Leon immediately went to a giant holographic map that was in the middle of the room and turned it on. The blue prints of the entire station lit up and after observing the map for a couple of minutes, the chameleon pointed out the room that they were looking for.

Wolf smiled. _This job is so easy_ he thought. _I can taste those 50 million credits! With this much money, I can use it to upgrade my Wolfen and take down Fox McCloud, once and for all!_ Wolf snickered silently at the thought and he pointed towards the exit with his thumb "Shall we?" he asked.

Leon and Panther simultaneously nodded and both creatures stepped out of the room, Wolf on their heels. Leon started walking in the direction, his tail dragging behind him. Panther was skittish, because the money was at stake and there was so many things that could go wrong. Wolf followed his crew members and kept his paw on his gun, anxiously. Leon led the two members of the crew through more twists and turns until he stopped and looked around.

"What's the matter Leon?" Wolf whispered.

"Nothing. Be quiet."

"Don't tell me you got us lost Leon!" Panther said.

"I said, be quiet" Leon replied, his voice getting louder.

Wolf, trusting Leon's judgment nudged Panther roughly shutting him up. Leon looked around and finally dismissed a feeling that crept up on him. "It must be nothing." he muttered.

"Leon. Can we get a move on or would you like your tail where it's at?" Wolf asked.

Leon glared at Wolf and nodded. The chameleon went led the crew on their search for the storage room once again. After walking a few more turns and going down a couple floors of the vast space station, Leon finally stopped in front of a door. But on the door handle, was a key code complete with a finger scan.

"Now what are we going to do?" Leon groaned. "Even if we know the key code, we can't break into the door without a thumb print. Usually, people with high clearances have access through this door."

"What are they keeping in there that would require high clearance?" Panther wondered.

Wolf punched Panther and saw the cat flinch in pain "Focus Panther! We are here for this job and this job only. Remember boys, 50 million credits are on the line."

Wolf knew that he got his crew hooked on the idea as Leon licked his lips with anticipation and Panther's eyes were full of greed.

"But Wolf, how can we get past the scan?" Panther asked, "We don't even have a thumb to use."

Wolf smiled and said, "Panther that is the most sensible question you asked. I'm so glad you asked because of this." Wolf reached in his pocket and pulled out a device. Once Panther saw it, understanding flashed across this purple features.

"WOLF!" Panther shouted with joy, forgetting himself.

"SHHHH!" Leon wrapped his tail around the neck of the excited panther, choking him. "This is a secret mission remember?"

Panther nodded and Wolf got right to work. His device had the ability to read the oils and the shape of the thumb print of the previous owner. So it scanned the box with green light and information of the thumb shape showed up on the device. Wolf smiled as he connected a memory stick into the scan and pressed the button. After a couple of seconds, the light flashed green as it accepted the scan and Wolf grinned with victory. He then turned and said "Well, the hardest part is done. Panther, after you." Wolf stepped aside and Panther rubbed his paws with anticipation. He used his claw and unscrewed the screws slowly as he did not want to break his own claw. Finally after all four screws were out, Panther carefully took out the code box, showing wires of different colors underneath it.

"Panther! Do you know which wire to cut?"

"Yes. Be quiet."

"Panther? Are you sure?" the chameleon pressed.

"Yes, I'm sure. Now be quiet!"

The purple panther's face was scrunched with concentration. Sweat rolled down his face with stress and nervousness. His eyes looked at the multitude of color wires, knowing that if he made one mistake, it would cost their lives. Finally, Wolf spoke up "Let's go Panther. We need to get out of here soon!"

Panther finally got to a decision and took his claw, reached in and cut all of the wires in one smooth stroke. When he pulled his claw out, Panther stood motionlessly with Wolf and Leon staring at him. Nothing happened, and when Panther felt that everything was clear, he attempted to open the door. The door to the storage room opened easily and Wolf smiled triumphantly and pushed the door open all the way. The three creatures stepped into the room and turned on the lights.

The storage room was huge. Shelves lined the space with miscellaneous items on it. Boxes stacked up on the ground, collecting dust and cobwebs.

"What are we even looking for?" Leon asked.

"I told you Leon, It's a briefcase. But this one has an insignia of a rose over a fire." Wolf answered.

Once hearing what Wolf said, Panther looked at his crew leader with shock "What did you just say?" he asked.

"A rose over a fire. Why?" Wolf stared at the shocked cat. "Panther! We need the money!"

"But that's impossible!" Panther mumbled to himself. Realizing that Wolf was talking to him, Panther nodded. "You're right Wolf. There is the money!"

After spending minutes then an hour in the storage room, Leon sat down sighing on some unexplored boxes sighing. "It's no use guys. It's not in here. Maybe your source forgot to leave it in the room."

Wolf heard a clatter and he turned to the sound. He noticed that it came from Leon. "Leon! Stand up and look behind you!" he ordered.

Leon did so and he looked back. The chameleon's face was overcome with a smile as he found the brief case that the team was looking for. Wolf took the briefcase and put it right side up. The insignia was indeed of a rose over a fire. Wolf laughed and said "Let's see what this briefcase has inside that is causing us a lot of trouble." Once he flipped the latch, alarms sounded throughout the station.

"We have been made!" Leon hissed. "Someone must have found the security guard in the closet!"

"Or maybe someone found the map still on!" Panther argued. "You are at fault as much as I am!"

"Shut up you idiots!" Wolf snarled "We need to get out of here."

The Star Wolf team stepped out in the hallway and ran back in the direction where they came from. A guard appeared out of nowhere and screamed "That's them! There's the intruders! Stop them!" The guard aimed his blaster at Wolf, but before he fired, Leon beat him to the punch.

Gunshots sounded as the three members ran through the hallway. Wolf passed the briefcase to Panther as he drew out his two blasters and covered their retreat. He took down 3 guards before more started to show up. The Star Wolf team ran through a bunch more twists and turns, fighting guards along the way and almost losing the briefcase in the process. However the team accidentally took a wrong turn and found themselves on the upper floors, higher than where they needed to be. As they were running, a squadron of guards appeared before and behind them. "You are surrounded! Please drop your weapons and come with us!" One of the guards ordered.

Wolf looked around and it seemed like luck was on his team tonight. He nudged both Leon and Panther while whispering "Make it look like you are dropping your weapons then move like mad to that ventilation shaft." Both creatures nodded in understanding. Wolf stepped forward showing his two guns. As he dropped down to one knee acting like he was placing his guns on the floor, he smiled then faster than lightning started firing in front and behind him. The guards were taken by surprise and before they knew it, 4 of their men were taken down in a flash. They made the sensible decision to return fire, but through stress and fear, many of their shots missed. After shooting some more guards, Leon shot the cage open and dove through the shaft. Panther jumped in after him with the briefcase and Wolf followed.

Every creature bounced and banged through the shaft as it went downwards at different angles, they landed on the shaft with a groan. Hoping against hope that they weren't heard, Leon crawled to the first visible opening, stuck his head out and looked back at Wolf and Panther. "I know where we are! We are actually close to our Wolfens!" Leon hissed.

Wolf pushed him and said "Lead the way chameleon! Let's go!"

Leon hissed at Wolf, but followed his orders. The Star Wolf team crawled through the shafts for what seemed like hours, until Leon finally stopped. "Here we are! Let's get out of this horrible place."

Wolf smiled in agreement. Carefully, he took out the cage and placed it on the inside of the shaft. Grabbing the sides of the walls, Wolf slowly and silently lowered himself down and he landed on the ground without making any noise. Panther threw down the briefcase and followed him, with Leon right behind.

Quickly, the Star Wolf team made their way to their Wolfens and started up their engines. Ignoring the "not authorized to take off" warnings, Wolf pressed the launch button and his Wolfen was out into space once more. He heard Leon and Panther cheering in his communications. Wolf led his companions away from the space station and once they were clear, Wolf ordered them to put their Wolfen in hover.

The planes hovered in place as Wolf pulled the briefcase onto his lap. "Gentlemen," he said, "Let's see if whatever we are delivering in this briefcase is worth the trouble." Leon snickered and Panther clapped his hands with anticipation. Wolf unlatched the briefcase one by one, his face showing excitement and eagerness. Once the briefcase opened, his face turned into confusion as he saw the item in it. _Now, what is this and why is this worth 50 million credits_ Wolf thought as he pulled it out of the briefcase.

The item was a star shaped earring.

 **Author's Note: This is the longest chapter that I wrote. I hope you enjoyed the introduction of Wolf and Star Wolf. Shout out to LadyofStarFox and Red Arr0w for leaving reviews and telling me how to improve on my writing skills. Chapters 7 and 8 will be coming out on Sunday and Monday consecutively. Have a great night!  
~AchillesShield **


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

 _The Lylat System_

A gunshot echoed through the Great Fox as Fox McCloud hit the bullseye on the moving target. He placed down his smoking gun and took off his earmuffs as a computerized voice responded with "22 thousand points." Upon hearing his results, Fox sighed and shook his head as he holstered his weapon. The vulpine turned and walked back to the bench that was directly behind him. He picked up a water bottle and took a huge drink. At that moment, Falco Lombardi walked inside the gun range and took a look at the score board.

"22 thousand points huh? That's not bad at all." the bird commented.

Fox shook his head. "But it's nowhere near my average."

"Oh come on Fox! We haven't had a job in months. You are only in a slump."

"That may be so Falco, but I feel that since Krystal's death, my skills aren't as sharp anymore."

"That's completely understandable Fox. Everyone heals differently. But I promise you that in time, your skills will be back.

Fox nodded. "Thank you Falco. I now realize that Krystal would want me to move on. I know that she wants me to live my life to the fullest and the way to do that is to find a job and provide for the crew.

"But don't you want to figure out who did this to Krystal?" Falco protested.

"I do Falco, but like I said, I don't know where to even start. Meanwhile, lets find a job so we can live. While we are doing a job or something, we can also keep our eyes and ears out for anything that has to do with Krystal's death."

Falco nodded, "That seems like a sensible idea. So what are you going to do now?"

Fox took a drink of water "Right now? I am going to take a shower and probably wait until somebody or someone contacts us, hopefully for a job."

"Alright buddy. I'll see you later" the bird replied as he stood up and went to the shooting range. Fox picked up his water and left the room, as he heard gunshots echo behind him.

Fox McCloud stepped out of the shower and grabbed the towel. He dried his fur and then wrapped the towel around his waist. Condensation fogged the bathroom mirror and the vulpine wiped it off with a cloth. He inspected his face and noticed that the once brown fur was losing its luscious feel. _I led a good life. I have no regrets._

A familiar blue vixen filled his mind and Fox smiled at all the memories of their time together. _Ah Krystal. Only if you were there to see your service. There was a lot of tears. I think I cried the most out of all of them._ _We were quite a team huh? But Krystal, what should I do now? I can't provide for my friends. We have no money coming in._ _What we need right now is a job._

 _But I'm just lying to myself. I can't do this without you Krystal. I don't know if I can._

Fox shook his head and he walked out of the bathroom and into his bedroom. Grabbing a set of fresh clothes, the vulpine put it on and walked out of the room. The temperature changed and a wave of cold air hit the fox and he started to shiver. _The AC must have gone haywire again_ he thought, _I need to tell Slippy about that._ The vulpine went down the hallway in search of Slippy. When he rounded the corner, he collided with a running Peppy.

Both creatures hit each other and went flying, Fox one way and Peppy the other. Fox got up and helped Peppy up. "Wow gramps! I can't believe you still move like that!"

"Fox! There…. There…" Peppy stammered between breaths.

"Peppy! Just take your time, gather your thoughts and calm down." The vulpine reached out and steadied the hare with his two paws.

"Thanks Fox… There is a special and urgent message for you on the Communications Center. It's from Dinosaur Planet!

"Dinosaur Planet? Is it Tricky? What happened?"

"I don't know. Once I saw who it was from, I didn't hear. I immediately came looking for you."

Fox nodded his head gratefully. "Thank you Peppy. I will take it over here. Why don't you go to the command bridge and tell ROB to turn to go to Dinosaur Planet. I want to be on our way there already IF something happened."

"Ok Fox! Good luck!"

The vulpine turned to leave and a thought struck him. "Peppy! Can you tell Falco to come and meet me in the Communication Center? Also can Slippy fix the air conditioner again?"

Peppy waved, "Ok Fox! I will do that at once."

The fox left and walked down the hallway. He turned a couple of corners and found himself in front of the Communications Center. As Fox pressed the button to open the door, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned and saw Falco Lombardi walking up to him. "What's the matter Fox?"

"I don't know yet Falco. I am about to find out."

The vulpine and the bird walked inside the Communications Center. The two friends headed to the machine and Fox pressed the button. A holographic head of King Tricky appeared and immediately Fox could tell something went on. Falco pressed play and the leader of the EarthWalker clan started talking.

"FOX!" Tricky yelled while an explosion happened in the background, "We are having trouble here on Dinosaur Planet. I need the Star Fox team over here as soon as possible! We are under an invasion. It seems like they are after our gem stones! We don't know who they are." Another dinosaur appeared in the view and whispered something to Tricky. The King of the whole EarthWalkers beamed with pride. "We are pushing back them back. Roshna! I need you to move your squadron to Moon Mountain Pass and hold them off! Tell the CloudRunners to rendezvous with me at Thorntail Hollow! I have another job for them." Roshna bowed and left out of sight. "Fox! Even though my lieutenant tells me we are winning this battle, I still need you to come! You are the only one who can figure out why this is happening!" Another explosion happened, but it was closer. "I need to go. Please come!"

After the message stopped playing, Fox immediately turned around and ran out of the communications room with Falco hot on his heels. "Falco! I need you to find Slippy and tell him to prep the Arwings. We need to get to Dinosaur Planet and fast!"

The blue bird nodded with understanding. "Will do Fox." Falco turned and ran in the opposite direction.

 _Could this be the break we are looking for?_ the vulpine thought as he ran to the command bridge. _Tricky said that they didn't know who the enemies were. Could they be the same that shot down Krystal?_ Upon reaching the bridge, Fox pressed the door open and found Peppy standing next to ROB. Hearing the door open, Peppy turned and said "The Portal to Dinosaur Planet is charged we are ready to go at your command."

Fox nodded and said "Do it. I need you and ROB up here when we reach the planet. I'll take Slippy and Falco with me down on the ground." Fox then turned and left the room.

The Great Fox slowed down in the middle of the vast universe. Suddenly its powerful blasters filled with green light and shot it a couple hundred yards in front of them. The light created a giant circle and from Peppy's view at the command bridge, Dinosaur Planet was visible. He nodded at ROB and the robot increased the speed of the magnificent craft. The Great Fox sped up and passed through the portal and came out of the other side.

Fox ran through the hallway for the hangar. As he crossed an intersection, he noticed Falco and Slippy rounding the corner and joining him. "The Arwings are prepped to launch!" Slippy gasped.

The three friends ran down the hallway and they finally reached the hangar. Fox jumped in and closed the cockpit, and turned on his Arwing. The engine hummed with life and with a push of a button, the Arwing shot out into space and Fox could see Dinosaur Planet in the distance. "Is everyone out?" Fox asked

"I am!" Slippy answered

"Me too!" was Falco's response.

The Great Fox orbited Dinosaur Planet and Peppy sat back in his chair. "Good luck Fox. I hope you figure out what's happening."

As the three Arwings penetrated the atmosphere of Dinosaur Planet, Fox headed straight for the place he knew where Tricky would be: Thorntail Hollow. As the leader of the Star Fox team flew over the planet, he couldn't help but look outside and see the remains of battle. The vulpine gasped with disbelief. The once beautiful Thorntail Hollow was ravished with craters and trees were felled. Fox saw a lot of dinosaurs, hard at work already repairing the damages. As the Arwings approached the clearing where Fox had landed all those years ago, Fox felt a sense of relief as he saw the King of the Earthwalkers under heavy conversation with Roshna.

"Alright boys. Take it nice and easy. We are going to land our Arwings over in that area. Please try not to spook them. We are here to help them and not kill them."

The Arwings landed on the clearing and Fox jumped out. Immediately, the vulpine walked to Tricky with Falco and Slippy behind him.

"… Good Roshna. We also need to send some EarthWalkers to Cape Claw. Make sure that our beach fortifications are superior. We need to protect the Ocean Force Point Temple if our enemies come back." Tricky was saying.

Roshna bowed and said "Yes my lord." The lieutenant saw Fox and his friends and brought his tail around to his head, a traditional dinosaur greeting.

Tricky turned and once seeing the vulpine, the King beamed then quickly his face turned to sorrow. "They caught us unawares last night. I have just arrived to my home and they attacked. We lost 100 of my brethren to the first wave alone."

"Do you know who is behind this? What were they after?" Fox asked

"Lieutenant Roshna has captured one of the soldiers. A lizard. In fact all of the soldiers were lizards. We are interrogating him right now, but he hasn't told us anything. Right now we are guessing that they are after our gemstones."

Another dinosaur rushed in. "My lord! My lord!"

King Tricky turned, "What is it?"

"They have gotten away with one of our gemstones my lord. The gemstone from here in Thorntail Hollow."

Tricky sucked in a breath. "Which one?"

"The red one, I'm afraid my lord."

The King of the EarthWalker clan sighed heavily and bowed his head. "Thank you. Report back to Roshna." The dinosaur turned back to Fox. "The red gemstone is the rarest gemstone on Dinosaur Planet. It is also the most hardened stone, even harder than diamond. I fear for our future now."

The fox nodded. "Don't worry my friend. We will stop whoever is behind this attack. Is there anything I can do right now?" he asked.

King Tricky shook his head. "Not at this moment. But I would love if you could work with us on figuring out who is behind all of this and why." After that last statement, Tricky noticed a figure drop out of the sky and he smiled. "There is someone who wants to see you."

Fox felt a rush of wind at his back and he turned. Standing before him in all of her power was the Queen of the CloudRunner tribe. The pterodactyl stood before him regally her wings folded behind her back. The Queen wore a simple circlet of silver with a picture of a pterodactyl in the middle made of gold. Around her neck hung a necklace full of different jewelry. Gold, rubies and emeralds glistened in the sunlight but the one thing that stood out the most was the gemstone. The gemstone was the biggest stone the vulpine has ever seen and it was the symbol of the Queen's power. Breaking her regality, the Queen rushed to Fox and embraced him in a hug.  
"Fox! My old friend. It's been a long time." the Queen exclaimed.

"It has, your majesty." he answered.

The Queen laughed. "Must we trifle ourselves with formality? Fox! We are friends after all!"

"Yes your ma-. Yes we are Queen CloudRunner. It's so good to see you are working with Tricky."

The Queen looked at the EarthWalker King and smiled "Yes. Even though our two tribes never seen eye to eye in the past, we have mutual interests at the moment."

Fox nodded and spoke to King Tricky and Queen CloudRunner, "I am going back to the Great Fox. Let me know if there are more that we can do!"

King Tricky nodded, "You have already done enough for us Fox. We will keep you updated and we will tell you anything that we can from the lizard."

The vulpine said his thanks to the King and Queen and went back in his Arwing. As the Arwing rose, King Tricky said his farewell and Queen CloudRunner merely lifted up her wings in salute. Fox turned his Arwing and shot back out to space with Falco and Slippy in pursuit.

"So you think whoever was behind this also may be responsible for Krystal's death?" Peppy said.

"Yes. King Tricky said that he doesn't know who the enemies are. He doesn't know where they came from. When the invasion was over everyone fled and took all information with them. But except one. King Tricky has managed to capture a lizard and is now holding him. His lieutenant Roshna is interrogating him and we will get all the information possible if the lizard breaks." Fox answered.

Peppy looked at Falco and Slippy. "He tells the truth Peppy." Slippy said. "We have reason to believe that they are behind Krystal's death."

"Well, it's not much but it's a start! Good job team." Peppy said. As the three friends turned away from the hare, "Fox, I need you to do me a favor." The vulpine stopped in his tracks and turned to him.

"I need you to keep a cool head. I know that this is hard for you right now, but we need a leader. Can you be that leader right now?"

Fox nodded. "I can and I will."

Peppy leaned back in his chair and stroked his mustache. "That's good to hear. Now go get some sleep. You have a long day ahead of you."

The fox nodded his thanks and left the room. The vulpine wandered down the hallway and stood before his bedroom. _I will find out who did this Krystal, and I promise you, they will pay_. He opened the bedroom door and he crashed down on the bed, falling into a dream.

Wolf O'Donnell sat in his Wolfen with a confused look on his face. The item that held in his hand stared back at him as it seemed like it was mocking him. _Why is this so important?_ He thought. _It's only an earring. There must be no value to this_. Wolf shrugged his shoulders, _this worthless piece of trash is worth fifty million credits._ He heard Panther chuckle in the background. "Well Wolf? What is it?"

"It's an earring."

Panther roared with laughter. "Wow Wolf. I didn't know you were such a jokester! What is it really?"

"Panther, it's an earring."

Panther went silence then Wolf could hear him muttering "An earring. A lousy piece of earring? Why would they want us to find an earring? I can't believe we almost got killed for an EARRING!"

Leon chuckled "Aw come on Panther! Maybe it's a surprise gift for a lucky creature."

Wolf sighed and put the earring back in his briefcase. _Usually I don't ask any questions, but this job just got different_ he thought.

"Ok Wolf. Where are we delivering that earring? Did your secret source tell you where we need to go?"

Wolf nodded and said "Corneria."

Leon groaned "Not Corneria again! You know we still have the bounties on our heads the last time we were there!"

Wolf nodded and said, "But it's the only way we can find out answers. Maybe someone will meet us there!"

Leon sighed resignedly. "Alright Wolf. After you."

The three Wolfens got out of hover and shot out into space, with Wolf in the lead and Leon along with Panther closely by.

 _Fox McCloud was alone in the darkness with barely light to show him the way. Trees surrounded him and its branches blocked majority of the sunlight from ever reaching the forest floor. The wind blew gently, carrying the feeling of coldness as it ruffled the vulpine's fur. Hitching up his backpack, Fox looked around for a possible route through the darkness of the forest. Leaves rustled in the wind and the vulpine jumped, his heart racing. Vines hung low from the trees as moss grew on the bark. Fox listened intently, and once he heard nothing, he set off from his position._

 _Looking up, Fox found that his view of the sky was obstructed by the trees. He shook his head and stopped. The vulpine put down his backpack and drew out a canister of water. After taking a couple of swigs of water, Fox put the canister back in his backpack and put his paw in the pocket of his cargo pants. He felt for his most prized possession; the item that would help him face all odds. Fox drew out the knife sized staff and stared at the weapon for a couple of minutes. He sighed sadly and put it back in his pocket once again. Fox started walking once more, looking for something or someone._

 _Minutes dragged into hours, as the vulpine walked through the supposedly vast forest. He hadn't heard a single sound aside of the rustling leaves and the wind blowing. The vulpine shivered and zipped up his jacket, protecting his body from the cold air. Fox noticed that the sun was rapidly descending and Fox made a quick decision to search for shelter. After walking for another hour, Fox found a hollow cave in the hillside. Hurrying to the cave, Fox quickly explored the inside and found nothing of significance. The cave was short and Fox could go to the end, look back and still see the entrance._

 _Sighing with relief, the vulpine dropped his backpack. Fox started a fire and the breeze from the forest kept the smoke out of the cave, which the vulpine was extremely grateful for. Taking out his sleeping arrangements, Fox set up his bed space and took out his food. After cooking his food and eating it, Fox laid down on his sleeping bag and took out the knife._

 _He pushed on the button, and the knife sprang into a staff. The vulpine could not help but marvel at the impeccable balance and the elegance of the staff. He observed the spear point and made sure it was sharp as always. Fox looked back down and noticed that the chamber was still full of the blue liquid: magic. Finally, the vulpine sighed sadly and pressed the button on the staff once again. It shrunk back into knife form and he put it next to him in reach. He looked at the darkness of the forest, rolled over and fell asleep._

 _The moon moved across the night sky, the light unable to penetrate the barrier of the forest. Darkness reigned the forest, daring any creature to travel through. The wind picked up, blowing noisily through the trees, causing the leaves to rustle and fall. The forest floor became littered with dry and dead leaves as the winds knocked them out of the trees. In the distance, a light can be seen moving quickly._

 _A hooded figure was running, its paw clutching the lamp for dear life. The creature looked back and noticed that no one was after it. Looking around, the figure noticed a cave through the trees. It ran, the light shaking up and down as the figure picked up its speed. The two paws slammed against the earth, crackling the dead leaves and kicking up dirt. Finally, the figure stopped in front of the cave and caught its breath. Once it calmed down, the figure walked up into the cave and peered inside._

 _Fox McCloud heard the movement behind him. Pretending that he was still asleep, he heard the creature go in the cave closer and closer. Once the vulpine knew that the invader was nearby his backpack, he acted. Fox sprang up and in one movement, grabbed the knife, pressed the button and when the staff sprang to its full length, pointed it at the creature._

 _"_ _Who are you? Why are you here?" Fox asked._

 _The hooded figure said nothing. Instead, the creature stepped forward and nudged the staff away. Fox could notice a faint smile on the hooded figure's lips, but before the vulpine could do anything, the hooded figure reached into a pouch that hung off its waist and pulled out powder. In a flash, the creature threw the powder into the fire and it exploded blinding Fox momentarily. After the vulpine rubbed his eyes, he noticed that his adversary was gone. Running to the mouth of the cave, Fox searched, his eyes straining against the darkness in hopes he would find the fleeing figure. Few minutes passed and the vulpine gave up, returned to his bed and fell asleep._

 _The moon set while the sun rose. The giant ball of fire climbed higher and higher, lighting every shadows and corner except for the forest where Fox laid. The vulpine stirred, woke up and stood up, getting ready for the new day. The event in the middle of the night didn't faze Fox, but he could not help but wonder who the mysterious creature was._

 _Pushing the thought aside, Fox packed up his backpack and kicked the slowly dying fire dead. He found and secured the knife sized staff in his pocket. Breathing in the morning air, Fox set upon his journey. He walked through the forest, his face showing determination and anticipation. The fox ignored the gloomy vibe that the forest gave out. Instead, he focused on the single task that was at hand. When the day fell and night approached, Fox found another shelter and spent the night there._

 _A few days later, Fox did the same exact things he did the first day. The vulpine walked jumped over fallen trees and walked through valleys, always keeping his paw on the knife. When Fox leaped over a small rock rising on the side of the hill, he landed on the ground with a grunt. The hill led downwards and Fox couldn't shake the feeling of being drawn to that specific location. He decided to follow his instincts and went down the green, barely visible, hillside._

 _Once the hill turned into a flat piece of land, Fox knew that he was in a valley. Trees constantly surrounded him and the vulpine smelled the scent of rotting leaves and wood, decomposing underneath his paws. Taking a break, Fox took out his water canister and drank deeply. Once he satisfied his thirst, the vulpine put his backpack on once again and set out hiking through the forest. A few hours later, the sun descended, the light giving away to the darkness. Fox looked around and couldn't find a shelter. The fox walked quickly through the forest in search for anything that would provide him refuge._

 _A movement caught Fox's eye. The vulpine turned, and searched the shadows for the movement. Disappointed he couldn't find what it was, Fox sighed and prepared to step out once more. Once his paw hit the ground, the movement caught his eye once again. This time, Fox was prepared for it and caught a floating ball of light. Silently, Fox reached in his pocket and took out the pocket knife and pressed on the button. The staff sprang up into action and the vulpine gripped the staff with both paws, feeling secure with the weapon. The fox crept past the trees and when he got nearer and nearer, he noticed the ball of light was in fact a lamp next to a creature._

 _Fox stifled a gasp. It was the same hooded figure that he encountered in the cave. The hooded figure had its back to the creeping vulpine. Fox silently went behind a tree, his staff ready for action. As the fox crept to the tree, he stepped on a twig and it snapped loudly. The hooded figure looked up quickly from what it was doing and looked around. Behind the tree, Fox held his breath and hoped that the creature didn't hear him. After taking a couple of seconds to calm his nerves, Fox decided it was time to act. He jumped out behind the tree and went into a fighting stance, ready for what the mysterious hooded figure would do._

 _The vulpine was only met with disappointment. The creature vanished! He sighed and walked up to the lamp that was sitting on the ground. But once the fox did that, he heard movement. Getting back into his stance, Fox hefted his staff higher, ready to meet any opposition. He heard movement everywhere and the vulpine spun around, only seeing darkness. After a few tense moments, Fox stopped hearing the movements but the vulpine did not rest. He stayed alert and on guard, keeping watch in the darkness. Suddenly Fox noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye and he turned. The hooded creature held a rock in its paw and before Fox could react, sent it crashing down on his skull._

 _When Fox regained his consciousness, he noticed that it was morning. Small amounts of light penetrated through the trees and the vulpine stirred. Fox regretted the decision and grunted with pain. He felt the side of his head with his paw and felt his cut cleaned and stitched._

 _"_ _You should not move. I hit you pretty hard with that rock." a voice said._

 _Fox looked around searching for the voice. Finally, the figure walked out of the forest, its face deeply hidden underneath the hood and the creature held out a bowl of steaming soup. "I made this soup. I hope you like it."_

 _Fox accepted the bowl gratefully, but there was one thing about the creature that nagged him. While eating the soup, the fox searched in his mind to figure out what it was about the creature that interested him greatly. After thinking for a few minutes without any success, Fox ignored the feeling. He finished the soup, placed the bowl next to him and he turned and looked at the creature. The figure sat on the log silently and when it noticed the vulpine staring, its body started shaking. The vulpine got up and slowly walked to the creature while saying: "Don't cry. It's alright. You helped me and I owe you a debt of gratitude."_

 _"_ _But, I could have killed you." the mysterious hooded creature answered. Every word that came out of its mouth sent shivers down Fox's spine._

 _"_ _Look at me. You are the first creature I have seen in a long time. I want to get to know you." the fox said._

 _The creature sniffled and it turned its head towards the vulpine, but kept the head down. Its paws rose out of the jacket and threw back the hood. Fox gasped with surprise as he looked at the face he did not expect to see._

Fox McCloud woke up with a start, his heart beating quickly. Sweat rolled down his head and the vulpine sat on the side of his bed. The fox rubbed his face with his paws and drew a quick intake of breath. The dream remained in his head and he could still remember the face of the mysterious figure. _This is a weird dream. It's definitely impossible._ However, the more Fox thought about his dream, the more he felt a connection to it. Fox looked at his nightstand and noticed the clock read 9:47 AM. The vulpine groaned and stood up, his muscles protesting after hours of little to no movement. Fox put on his normal everyday clothes and walked out of his room and into the hallway. The fox went to the kitchen and found the room void of any creatures. Deciding that he didn't want any breakfast, Fox poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down at the dining table with the steaming mug nestled in his paws. The dream was bothering him and the vulpine could not help but try to figure out what it meant.

 _That dream, I can't describe it. What does it mean? Why do I have a strong connection to it? It's impossible after all._

At that moment, Falco Lombardi, Slippy Toad and Peppy Hare walked into the kitchen. After seeing Fox at the table, Falco dropped in next to him, "Top of the morning Fox!"

"Good morning Falco, Slippy, Peppy." Fox replied.

Falco and Slippy engaged each other in a conversation about the invention that Slippy was making. However Peppy noticed something was wrong with the vulpine. "Fox? Is everything alright?" the old hare asked.

Fox sighed and said. "I'm alright Peppy. I just had this weird dream last night and I just can't shake the fact that it might be real. I mean, I've tried to forget about it, but it keeps coming back."

Noticing that the dream was troubling Fox, Falco and Slippy went silent. The bird, toad and hare looked at Fox with expectancy. They had learned in the past to trust Fox's instinct and gut, as it had never failed them before. Fox explained his dream, leaving out no details except the face of the creature he saw as his friends sat around the table and listened intently. But what the vulpine said next caused all three creatures to gasp with shock. Falco stood up and paced the room, scratching his head. Slippy muttered "That's impossible, it's only a dream." over and over to himself. Peppy only sat in the chair with disbelief on his face. Fox looked around and noticed the state his friends were in and regretted he ever said it. He knew that it would haunt his every waking moment, but out of despair, hope has risen anew.  
Peppy leaned in from his chair and said to the confused vulpine. "What did you say?"

Fox cleared his throat and answered: "I think Krystal is still alive."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

 _The Lylat System_

The whole room went silent as Fox McCloud announced that one statement. Falco was frozen with shock. Slippy merely stared at the table while Peppy leaned back in the chair, stroking his mustache thoughtfully.

Falco broke the silent, "Say that again. One more time."

Fox turned and looked at his best friend and spoke slowly "I think Krystal is alive."

The blue bird shook his head. "That's impossible! We saw her crash and her body was missing. Even if she did survive the crash, she would have been too injured."

Fox nodded, "I know Falco. But ever since the Krazoa Spirits resided in my body while I was at Dinosaur Planet, I gained more knowledge and understanding. I started to trust my instincts and so far my instinct is never wrong. Right now, my gut is screaming that Krystal is alive because SHE was the creature in my dream."

"But dreams are dreams!" Falco argued "There has been no proof they are true."

Slippy interjected, "But Falco, you have to admit. Fox's gut has never let us down. It was him that helped destroy the Aparoid Queen during the war. Honestly Falco? I have to side with Fox on this one. If his gut says that it's true, then I believe Krystal is indeed alive."

Falco looked at the hare who was still stroking his mustache for help. "Peppy. You are the only sensible creature on the Great Fox. Can you please tell Fox and Slippy that it was only a dream?"

Peppy leaned forward and folded his paws on the table. He looked at Fox and finally spoke "Falco's right. It's only a dream. There can be millions of possible explanations for that."

"Thank you Peppy!" Falco exclaimed.

"However," Peppy turned to Falco "Like Slippy said, Fox's gut has never let us down. It was what formed him into a leader he is today. I think we need to listen to him again. Let's chase down this lead about the mysterious enemies and see where that takes us."

Falco rolled his eyes to the heavens "I can't believe I am even listening to these crazies" he muttered. The blue bird paced back and forth knowing that six eyes rested on him with each step. Finally he turned and placed his wings on his hips. "Alright I'm in. But for the sake that your dream is NOT real, and that Krystal is indeed dead, what do you plan to do?"

Fox answered immediately "I plan to avenge her death. They showed up out of nowhere and attacked us. They also attacked Dinosaur Planet and stole the red gemstone from King Tricky. There is obviously something bigger at play here that might include the entire Lylat System, so I plan to stop it!"

Falco nodded. "That sounds like a plan! But here's the question, where do we EVEN start?"

"We can always contact King Tricky and ask him if they had gotten anything out of that lizard soldier" Slippy responded.

Peppy nodded "That's a good idea. It was morning on Dinosaur Planet when we went to check in on the King. That was yesterday, so maybe he's gotten something out of that lizard!"

All four friends stared at each other until Falco finally said "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get going! I'm not getting any younger!"

Plates and coffee mugs rattled on the tables as the chairs scraped backwards. The four friends walked to the Communications Center with Fox in the lead. Once arriving, Fox turned on the Holographic Communications and contacted the King of the EarthWalker clan.

After waiting a couple of minutes, another dinosaur head appeared in view and asked "This is Roshna, the Lieutenant to the High King of all EarthWalkers. Who wants to reach him?"

Fox stepped forward in view and placed a paw on his chest and bowed, a sign of respect. "Lieutenant Roshna. My name is Fox McCloud of the Star Fox team. You may have seen me and my crew on Dinosaur Planet yesterday. I need to speak with your King now."

Roshna nodded "Ah yes! The famous Fox McCloud, the savior of Dinosaur Planet! I recognized you as you landed but unfortunately in my haste, I wasn't able to welcome myself! I was too busy preparing our defenses if those cowards would ever come back. If they did, we will be prepared and we will destroy them! If they come, I will personally water our earth with their blood! We will render them limbless and sacrifice them to the Krozoans the spirits who keep our planets together. They will shake with fear as they dare cross the EarthWalkers!"

Fox smiled at the dinosaur's courage "I don't doubt that my dear lieutenant! I also have a grudge against them."

Roshna beamed "Fox McCloud helping us again! This is joyous indeed! You are asking for the King? He is occupied at the moment, but if you could wait for a few minutes, I will get him." The dinosaur lieutenant backed out of sight and went in search for the King.

Falco spoke up "Well, that's one blood thirsty dinosaur."

Fox laughed "If you think that was a blood thirsty dinosaur, you should have seen Tricky's father. The former King of the EarthWalkers was captured by the RedEye tribe and I had to go and help rescue him. Nearly trampled me flat he did and it was by luck that Tricky was there to stop him from spearing me. He was in crazy battle mode and ready to go to war."

Falco looked at Fox and said "I would never want to cross a dinosaur."

"Neither do I mate. Neither do I. The EarthWalkers are known for their strength, courage and warlike personalities. The CloudRunners however are more strategic. Unite those tribes and you will have a force to reckon with!"

It was at that moment when Fox finished his sentence, King Tricky appeared in view and immediately the dinosaur beamed. "Fox! It's so good to see you."

Fox smiled "You too Tricky. But we've only seen each other yesterday."

"But still, it's always good to see one friends!" Tricky's face then turned from happiness to more business like "So I know what you are going to ask me"

"And?" Fox asked.

"I have good news. The lizard managed to tell us quite some things. They don't really appreciate our interrogation techniques." The dinosaur King chuckled "Once we speared his claw with our horns, he was ready to spill the beans."

"What did he say? Did he say anything about Krystal?"

The EarthWalker King shook his head. "He said nothing about Krystal. But he did say something about their invasion on my planet." The King's voice was laced with anger, "They were indeed after our gemstones and they did get away with one. But to the reason why, he didn't say."

Fox sighed. _Another dead end. But at least we know that they got a gemstone_.

"Until we threatened to sacrifice him. We even showed him an image of how we are going to do it." Tricky leaned down and punctured an item with his horn. As his face went back into view, Fox could see it was a crudely drawn paper. After reading the paper, Fox felt sick to his stomach. In the background, he heard Slippy gagging and Falco was only smirking.

"After we showed him of our plans, he was willing to tell us EVERYTHING he knew" The King concluded.

Slippy swallowed bile that was building up in his throat "Are.. are you going to do those things to him?"

King Tricky looked horrified and offended. "Oh my goodness! I can't believe you think we are barbarians! We would never do such a thing like that."

Fox was impatient and he wanted to continue the conversation. "So Tricky my old friend, what did that lizard say?"

Tricky looked back at Fox as he remembered what they were discussing. "Oh yes! Sorry Fox. I got a bit carried away. Anyways… what was I saying?"

"The gemstones and the lizard" Falco answered.

"Ah yes! The gemstones. The lizard said that since our gemstone has incredible value and magical properties, they were going to make a weapon. What kind of weapon? We don't know yet. And after threatening him some more, we got no answers. It seems like the lizard don't know much about this weapon."

"Well what does he know then?" Fox asked.

"Only the important creature behind all of this." Tricky answered. "Although the lizard never revealed the creature he was serving, he only remembers the symbol."

"What do you mean symbol? Like an insignia?"

"Precisely. And this insignia of this mysterious creature is of a rose over a fire."

 _Corneria_

Wolf O'Donnell jumped out of his Wolfen still holding his briefcase. He hated that he had to come back to Corneria, especially when there was a rather large bounty on his head. The wolf checked inside the briefcase for the umpteenth time to make sure that their cargo was secured. Leon and Panther walked up to him and the chameleon spoke.

"What's the plan Wolf? How are we going to make this delivery?"

"I don't know yet Leon. They said that we needed to go to Corneria and they would make contact."

Panther spoke up "Guys, I still have a bad feeling about this."

Wolf looked at the panther, "How many times must we discuss this Panther? We get 50 million credits for this delivery. That is a lot of money for a simple job."

"Yeah, simple. If you mean getting caught and having to fight our way out of the station." Leon muttered under his breath.

Wolf heard the remark from the chameleon and chose to ignore it. "I say that we keep our ears close to the ground and figure out where we need to deliver this cargo."

Panther shook his head. "But Wolf, what is so important about this earring? Why is it worth 50 million credits? That makes absolutely no sense."

 _Panther's right. Why is this worthless piece of junk worth 50 million?_ Wolf thought. He pushed the thought aside and shoved Panther "Please don't tell me that you are getting soft. If this is the job, then we complete it."

Panther sighed resignedly. "I guess you are right Wolf."

Wolf looked at Leon and back to Panther. "I'm always right. Now I say that we split up and just figure out where we take this cargo."

Both creatures nodded and they turned to walk out of the hangar. Wolf looked at the flashing red clock that read the day was almost finished. _I think I should start at the bar_ Wolf thought, _there will be a lot of drunken creatures that will share information with me._

The wolf nodded, satisfied with his decision. He checked to make sure his Wolfen was locked and stowed away, hidden out of sight. The Star Wolf team had bought their own private hangar in Corneria under pretended names to protect the fact that the mercenaries are actually there. Wolf had to be extra careful because of the bounty that was placed on his and his crewmembers heads.

Wolf O'Donnell walked to the end of the hangar and turned off the lights. The entire room plunged into darkness and the wolf opened the door. He stepped outside and was welcomed with a breeze that sent a shiver down his spine. _Since the hangar is in the middle of the forest, the nearest town would be a couple of miles away,_ Wolf thought. He walked down the street and saw an unattended vehicle parked on the side of the road. Walking quickly to the vehicle and glancing around him, Wolf was cruising down the road in a matter of minutes.

The wolf drove until he reached the city and he pulled into the parking lot. _I won't be needing this anymore_ Wolf thought as he kept the keys in the ignition. He looked up and saw the welcoming sign to the Pink Flamingo bar. The wolf shook his head, grimacing at the name. He walked to the bar and opened the door, surveying the scene. Patrons stood around chatting and drinking, not taking the time to glance at the newcomer. Wolf was glad that he was not noticed and he walked inside with the briefcase and sat down on the chair by the bar table.

The bartender walked up to Wolf and asked him what he would like to drink. Wolf responded with "The cheapest but strongest alcohol you have."

The bartender laughed. "Sir, you are referring to every liquor I have here."

Wolf thought for a moment then responded "Then I'll have a bottle of your oldest Cornerian Scotch please."

The bartender nodded and fetched a cup and poured Wolf's order into it. He set the cup and finally the bottle before him. Wolf looked around with his one good eye, attempting to eavesdrop on the conversing patrons. He threw down a drink and poured himself another one. The conversations were nothing out of ordinary. They were basic talks about work and the home life with the wife and kids. _What a boring life they lead_ Wolf thought, _If I ever settled down, I would go mad_

Several hours later, Wolf found nothing that interested him. He sighed and left the bar defeated. The wolf walked down the street and finding an inn, he walked inside and booked a room for himself. After the innkeeper showed him to his room, Wolf immediately set the cargo on the desk next to the bed. Turning on his communications headset, he attempted to contact both Leon and Panther.

"Leon, Panther, status update?"

After a couple minutes of silence, Leon's voice spoke "I'm in the smuggler's district. So far I haven't heard of anything regarding our source"

Panther spoke up "Same as me in the thieves' guild. I haven't heard anything."

Wolf sighed. He had hoped that it would be easier than this. "Alright boys. I am going to get some rest. You should as well." A knock sounded on the door and Wolf looked back in alarm. Before the innkeeper left he had given him strict instructions not to tell any creature that he was there. "Do you guys know where I am?"

Both Leon and Panther answered with a resounding No.

Wolf pulled out his gun and whispered "Someone does." He inched closely to the door, his gun ready and his breathing steady. Flinging the door open he pointed his gun down a hallway then switched to the other side. Seeing that there was no one, Wolf lowered down his gun and looked around in confusion.

Finally before he closed the door, something on the ground caught his eye and Wolf walked closer to it. It was a card and the insignia was familiar: a rose over a fire.

While Wolf O'Donnell was discovering the card, Fox McCloud was standing behind Slippy as the toad worked at the computer. Falco and Peppy was close by watching the screen change with every keystroke that Slippy pressed. Finally the toad stopped and he swiveled in the chair.

"I'm sorry Fox, but there is no matching source with this insignia. We are at another dead end."

"Are you sure Slippy? Can you check again?" Fox asked.

Slippy shook his head, "Fox, I already checked the last three times. It's not going to change if I check for a fourth time."

Peppy finally spoke up "There is something that's bothering me about this insignia. It seems familiar."

"Thank you Peppy!" Fox said "There is indeed something about this that has been nagging me ever since Tricky told me about it."

"Well, it's getting late." Peppy spoke. "As you know time is very different near Dinosaur Planet. So we should be getting some sleep/"

Fox nodded and he gave his thanks to Slippy. He shook hands with his mentor and started walking back to his bedroom. Falco walked behind and when Fox stopped at his door, Falco spoke "We will get behind this. I promise you Fox!"

Fox smiled "Thank you Falco. You are a great friend."

Falco snorted "I am your only friend."

"That may be true. Falco, do you have any idea what this insignia may be about? It's been bothering me!"

Falco shook his head. "I'm sorry Fox, but I have no idea what it could be."

Fox sighed and opened the door. Saying good night to his friend the vulpine stepped in his room and the door closed behind him. Suddenly, weariness overtook him and Fox fell on the bed ready to go into a deep sleep.

 _Fox McCloud found himself sitting in his Arwing, flying towards a destination. The communications channel crackled in his earpiece and Slippy's voice spoke "So I will meet you inside the Sargasso Space Station. Be careful Fox! It's full of scum and villainous creatures!"_

 _Fox smiled. That was his specialty. Fighting creatures that may be a threat to the entire Lylat System. "Alright Slippy, you can go ahead and be careful!"_

 _An Arwing shot past him as Slippy turned on a burst of speed. The plane flew through space and disappeared in the distance. Hearing a sigh of sadness in his channel, Fox's heart melted. "He'll be alright Krystal. Slippy can take care of himself."_

 _"_ _Oh! Ummm. Yeah! Slippy is a capable toad. He will do well!" the vixen spoke. "But Slippy is who I am not worried about. I'm worried about someone else since he is close to my heart."_

 _"_ _Who is that?" Fox asked, "After all of this is over, we can go help him._

 _Krystal didn't answer. The only thing that Fox could hear over the radio was Falco chuckling. Falco was flying underneath Fox and since the communications were all connected together, he could hear everything._ Fox is so clueless _the blue bird thought._ But I'll let time take its course and when they are ready to admit their feelings for each other, then they will be ready.

 _A couple of minutes later, the Star Fox team took notice of the Sargasso Space Station. Fox hoped that Slippy had made it inside the space station safe and sound. "Falco, Krystal you'll take care of the enemies in the skies? You need to hold reinforcements off when the alarms go off in there."_

 _"_ _We can do it Fox!" Falco spoke._

 _"_ _You can count on us. Be careful Fox!" the vixen replied._

 _Fox landed his Arwing in the space station. After hearing that Slippy took his place in the computer room, the vulpine made his way to the top floor of the station. The station held a secret that would prove vital in the Aparoid War. Slippy then took down the security meausres, but as he did, the alarms went off. The Star Fox team was prepared for that and suddenly enemies filled the space station with reinforcements coming to aide them. The vulpine took out some enemies as he worked his way up. Reaching the computer room, Slippy joined him and both friends fought their way. Enemies fell like dominoes as the vulpine and the toad shot them with pinpoint accuracy. Finally the two friends reached the top floor and stood before a huge door._

 _"_ _GUYS! Can you please hurry up in there? There is starting to be a lot of enemies here!" Falco spoke._

 _Krystal merely laughed as she shot down another enemy. "Oh Falco! I thought you could face thousands of enemies by your lonesome. But with me here there is simply too many?_

 _Falco said nothing in response and Fox was grateful for the silence. Slippy was working like mad to try to slip past the last defensive measure. Finally, Slippy made past through the security gate and Fox slammed the button. The door opened and Fox ran through searching for the secret that would help them win the Aparoid war._

 _The room was empty! Fox yelled with frustration and anger and Slippy only looked around in shock. "This doesn't make sense." the toad spoke "It should be here!" After taking a couple of minutes to calm himself down, Fox spoke through his ear piece "Abort mission! Abort mission! The secret is not here."_

 _"_ _Well, well, well what do we have here?" a familiar voice broke through the comms in Fox's earpiece._

 _The vulpine gritted his teeth with frustration. "Wolf O'Donnell, I should have known."_

 _The wolf chuckled. "Fox McCloud. You should have known better than to attack my space station. Now I can't wait to tear your team apart."_

 _"_ _Yes yes yes! I cannot wait to pluck your feathers and roast you bird!" Leon chuckled._

 _"_ _What is with this chameleon and torturing me?" Falco muttered._

 _Fox sighed as he turned away. Slippy spoke "You take care of them and I'll stay here and try to take any memory that they have out of the computers."_

 _Fox nodded at Slippy's choice. The vulpine ran downstairs and through the Space Station. He jumped in the Arwing and flew out meeting his sworn enemy, Wolf O'Donnell. As he flew, another Wolfen appeared out of space and Wolf chuckled "Meet my newest recruit. Panther Caruso!" The panther flew to meet Fox and the vulpine circled away observing the new craft. The Wolfen that Panther flew was blood red, but the sign that stood out to Fox was a rose._

Fox McCloud woke up with a start, his dream fresh in his mind. _That's why the insignia was so familiar! It's remarkably close to Panther's_. He quickly got out of bed and walked into the hallway. He knocked on all of the doors and walked to the end of the hall. Falco stepped out, rubbing his eyes with Slippy and Peppy following him.

"What's this about Fox? Is something wrong?" Peppy asked.

"Nothing's wrong! I finally figured out why the rose seemed so familiar!"

"Why Fox? Please tell us why since you woke us all up." Slippy groaned. "This couldn't wait until morning?"

"No Slippy. It can't because the insignia belongs to Panther, the pilot of Star Wolf."

That made everyone wake up and look at Fox in interest. It was a small start, but a start nonetheless. Slippy quickly ran to the computer room with Falco behind him. Peppy smiled and placed his paw on Fox's shoulder. "I'll get some coffee for everyone." the old hare spoke. Then after walking a couple of steps, he turned and spoke to the vulpine. "I'm proud of you. Your father, James, would be proud of you." With that being said, Peppy disappeared, leaving Fox alone in the hallway.

 **Author's Note: This will be the last chapter in a while since I have Finals this week and I will be celebrating the holidays with my family. Thank you for all of your support and your interest in this story. Until next time and have a great ending to your 2016! ~AchillesShield**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: I apologize for the delay between Chapters 8 and 9. I just became really busy due to the new semester, got a new job and life. Thank you for your patience and I hope you have a good one! ~AchillesShield**

Chapter 9

 _Unknown Source_

The sun was setting and the moon rising, a calm cool wind blew through the castle grounds. Guards stood on the ramparts, illuminated by torches. Everything was still, not one creature made a sound. In the forest north of the castle a single light moved. The lizard guard caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and he turned, raising his gun. Immediately, the light went behind a tree. After standing still, his eyes fixated upon the spot where he saw the light, the guard snorted and resumed scanning the pathways, his gun always at the ready. Snoring was heard from the slave compound, disturbing the peace. The light reappeared behind the tree, and the holder was covered by a cloak with a hood. Quickly and silently, the creature snuffed out the light and gently placed the lamp down on the ground next to the tree.

Taking off its cloak, the moonlight shone upon the vixen's face. She was white as snow, with a single scar running through her left eye. Half of her ear was torn off, but it still moved as the vixen listened to every sound. At her hip was a gun with a silencer attached to it and she wore a belt, full of throwing knifes. The vixen took off her backpack that she was carrying and placed it down. Opening the pack, the creature pulled out a stout rope and observed it. She smiled: _This is all I need. Delios better be right otherwise this plan won't work because I'll be dead. Now all I need to do is wait._ The vixen sat down against the tree and watched as the night grew.

Several hours passed and the snowy vixen knew that the guards would be slumbering peacefully. Standing up, she brushed the leaves and the dirt that had gathered upon her clothes. Hoisting the rope on her shoulder, the creature ran across the grass, making sure she didn't step on any dry leaves or twigs on the way to the castle walls. Upon reaching the wall, the vixen stopped to catch her breath and to calm her racing heart. Attaching the rope to the grappling hook, the creature took a couple of steps back and she swung the rope experimentally. After she felt the balance and the weight, she twirled the ropes and threw it up on the battlement with a grunt. The grappling hook sailed through the air and landed on the stone ramparts with a clank next to a guard. The guard woke up in a daze but then shook his head, sniffed and fell back to sleep, warmed by the heat of the torches.

The vixen tugged on the rope several times to make sure it was stable and secure. After she felt safe, she placed her paws on the ramparts and started to climb. She took her time for the walls were slick and smooth, with no room for any ledges that her paws could hold onto. The vixen climbed doggedly with one end goal in her mind: to get to the slave compound at all costs. After nearly slipping and falling, the vixen finally reached the top of the battlement. _Delios better be right! This cat is our only hope. Our little resistance will fall apart without him. He better be in the compound_ the vixen thought.

The creature left the ropes and she silently walked to the sleeping lizard guard. Seizing the guard, the vixen quickly placed her paw around the lizard's mouth, stifling his cry. The lizard looked in the turquoise colored eyes of the vixen and felt something tickling against his throat. Gulping with fear, the lizard quickly looked down with his eyes and saw that the creature held a knife against his throat. "I am going to ask you a question. You have two chances to answer. If I don't find the first answer satisfactory, I will hurt you. Then you have your other chance." the vixen whispered "But if I don't like your second answer, then I won't hesitate to kill you right here, right now. Do you understand?"

The lizard nodded with fear. "Another thing. If you scream, I will hurt you and when the matter is resolved, I will look for you and I will make you wish you had died. Is that clear?"

The lizard didn't respond which caused the knife point to dig deeper on his throat. "Just one more push and there will be blood." The vixen said. "Is that clear?"

Commander Ragas' guard nodded, swallowing again. "Good. Now, do you have the keys to the slave compound? If not, where are they?"

The lizard felt the vixen remove her hand from his mouth. Licking his lips, the guard then sighed. Drawing his breath, the guard started to scream. The noise stopped quickly as it had started for the vixen quickly clamped her hand on the guard's mouth and then the guard felt a flash of pain. The creature had stabbed her knife into the guard's leg and held it there.

"Tsk tsk. I told you not to scream. Luckily, I knew you were going to do that! It's unfortunate that I have very low patience for guards that treat slaves like dirt. So that was your first chance. Do you want to give me the right answer this time?"

The guard didn't answer for a couple of seconds as the vixen dug the knife deeper into his leg. Finally the lizard nodded and the vixen took her paw off his mouth. "Commander Ragas only have the keys to the compound. No one else. I swear!"

The vixen smiled. "And where is this Commander Ragas?"

"You deem to go after Commander Ragas?" the guard said with disbelief. Then he laughed, "You walk to your doom vixen! He is inside the castle. Good luck reaching it alive!"

The vixen only smiled. "Thank you for your help friend." She then pulled the knife out of the groaning guard and wiped it clean with his uniform. The creature turned and silently walked across the rampart towards the castle. Watching her go, the guard still realized that he had his gun on the floor. Immediately, the guard reached down and pulled the gun up, and aimed. Before the guard could fire, the vixen heard the action and in one movement, she turned and dove sideways, throwing two knives. The knives whizzed through the air and buried themselves in the guard's chest. Looking at his chest then at the vixen, the guard dropped his gun and fell off the ramparts and onto the ground outside of the castle with a thud.

The vixen sighed and shook her head. She looked down at the ground at the lifeless figure of the lizard. _What a shame. I was willing to let him live. The choice was his anyways._ The creature looked around and noticed that the slave compound was connected to the castle. _The door leads to the outside. That's convenient._ Looking around the castle walls, she noticed that they all connected with each other and the giant castle dominated the scene. Breathing a quick thanks to her luck, the creature noticed that all the guards on the ramparts were asleep at their post. The vixen quietly walked towards a stairwell and started walking down the stone steps.

Upon reaching the bottom, the vixen heard voices and she realized that she had nowhere to hide. The white-furred creature took out some throwing knifes and held them loosely in both of her paws. The voices grew louder as the guards reached closer and closer, but then they stopped! The two guards were deeply into their conversation that they didn't notice the vixen. Suddenly the lizard turned and noticed her and raised his claw with alarm. Before he and the other guard raised their gun, the vixen let her knives go. The first knife sailed through the air and embedded in the guard's throat, and he fell back with a gurgle. The second knife smashed against his chest and the lizard fell over with a sigh.

Running quickly to the guards, the creature grabbed her knives with a single swoop. Looking at the two dead guards in front of her, she picked up the first guard dragged him to an empty barrel and stuffed him into it. The second guard, she dragged with her towards the slave compound.

 _So much to do… so little time. Zargos had good use of the medical supplies we were able to give him. But what else can we give him?_ Benjie the rabbit thought as he laid on his sleeping space, with his eyes closed. Suddenly, his ears perked at a familiar sound and he turned towards the entrance to the slave compound. After hearing the noise again, the rabbit quickly sat up and looked at the door. The noise sounded again for the third time. _The guards shouldn't be here at this hour,_ Benjie thought as he looked at the door. Finally, Benjie quietly stood up and tiptoed over his sleeping friends and walked to a window. He grabbed a chair and stood on it, looked through the window and the rabbit was shocked to find a white-furred vixen with a dead lizard next to her hitting the door.

"Who are you? Who is he? Why are you here? You need to get out!" Benjie whispered.

The vixen looked around and noticed the rabbit's head sticking out of the window. She quickly bowed and said "You need not know my name at this moment. I am here to find Zargos and to try to rescue you. I know of the Emperor and right now, we don't have a lot of time. As for him, he was very uncooperative so I killed him."

"You actually mean you killed a guard of Commander Ragas?" Benjie asked.

"Yes. He's dead. Can't you see? He's right here." the fox answered

"I like you already. Any enemy of Ragas and the Emperor is an enemy of mine. So you mean you are going to rescue us and get us out of here?" Benjie said with disbelief.

"I mean it. Where is Zargos? Is he in there with you?"

"No he is in the hole. If you get us out, I can take you to him!"

"Ok, but I need to get the keys first. I hear that Commander Ragas has them."

"You are going to Commander Ragas for the keys? You won't make it out alive!"

The vixen smiled "You are the second creature to say that to me tonight. I may surprise you, so don't worry. Can you tell me where Commander Ragas keeps the keys?"

"He lives in the castle. The Commander has the keys on him all the time. I only know that he lives across from the Emperor but I don't know where in the castle they are! There are guards everywhere. Leave now and don't worry about us!"

"I can't leave you rabbit! I've lost family to these evil creatures and I can't allow others to suffer the same. Besides, I'm already here and I plan to get you and everyone out tonight. Wake others up and tell them of the plan, but make sure that they are quiet."

Benjie nodded "Good luck to you vixen. May you have all the good fortune in the world!"

The vixen bowed and before she turned to leave, she motioned at the dead guard. "Where can I hide him? I already hid one in a barrel."

Benjie thought and pointed at the haystack "Put him there. No one uses the haystack anyways. He won't be disturbed there."

When the vixen left, Benjie the rabbit jumped off the chair and shook awake couple of creatures. "Be quiet!" the rabbit whispered "We are getting out of here tonight. We cannot wake the guards up, but have everyone be prepared!"

The other animals smiled with joy and they spread the news upon each other like a wildfire. Soon every creature was awake, hope filling the room.

Benjie sat on the chair and smiled. _Thank you whoever you are! Thank you for helping us._ The rabbit leaned back and folded his arms, as he awaited for the mysterious vixen's return.

All was silent in the courtyard as the vixen crept in the shadows, away from the slave compound. She reached and felt for her gun and knives, assuring herself that they were still there. Breathing softly, the vixen crept to the giant double doors and attempted to pull it. Locked! The snowy fox gave out a breath of impatient and pondered her options.

"Go outside and check on the slaves. I have a funny feeling. Something's not right." a voice said.

"Me go outside? But it's so warm in here. Why don't you do it?" the second voice retorted.

"Because I am higher in ranking, so it's an order! Do it or you will find yourself scrubbing the mess hall by yourself!"

The vixen backed up and stuck into the shadows. She breathed a quick prayer that she wouldn't be spotted as the double doors of the castle opened up. The lizard guard stepped through, cursing at his boss, and walked towards the slave compound. A whizzing sound was heard and the guard did not have time to process what the sound was as he fell on the ground face down with a knife in his back. The snowy fox stepped out and grabbed her knife out of the dead carcass, turned and slipped through the open doors.

When she stepped into the castle, she marveled at its beauty and she was only in the main hallway. To her left and right, doors to different rooms dominated the hallway and a giant staircase was before her. Paintings and decorations were lining the walls and they were inlaid with multiple jewels. Gold, silver, diamond and sapphires was present in her vision as the vixen looked around with wonder.

 _Well, the easy part's over_ the vixen thought _now to do the hard thing._ She was in deep thought that as she rounded the first door to check the room, she ran into the guard that she overheard.

The guard was caught by surprise "Hey! What are you.."

He never got any further as the vixen kicked his chest and the guard landed on his back with a crash. The lizard stood up with fury and he drew his sword. Licking it, the guard said evilly "I'll have you know that I am one of the beast swordsbeast in this castle. Even Commander Ragas himself praised my skill. I will kill you, NO! I will hurt you painfully before I will kill you." The guard laughed at his plan and did some skillful strokes with his sword. "Maybe I'll skin you alive just so you can experience pain! In fact…"

Again, the guard didn't get any further as the vixen drew her gun with the silencer and shot him. The guard fell with a sigh, his eyes glazing over and the sword clattered to the ground besides him. The vixen rolled her eyes and holstered her gun. After putting the guard into a closet, the vixen left the first room she entered and silently walked towards the stairs with two knifes in each of her paws.

 _If I was Commander Ragas or the Emperor, where would I sleep?_ she thought. _Of course the highest part of the castle so I can be away from the fighting if an invasion ever happened._ Walking up the stairs, the snowy fox was shocked to find very little resistance. _I understand why. No one is expecting anything to happen. They are probably asleep in their barracks, their belly full of spirits._ _This is really making it easier._

Finally reaching the top, the vixen was faced with a long hallway. Three doors were at the hallway and she noticed one of the doors were heavily guarded with four armed lizard guards. _That must be the Emperor's room_ she concluded. _Benjie said that Ragas lived ACROSS from the Emperor, and assuming if Benjie is correct, then that's where I'll find him. But how to take care of the guards?_

The vixen crouched around the corner surveying the scene before her. The guards sat around the table chatting, drinking and playing dice.

"Oi! You know that was a six! Stop cheating and give me back my money!" the first guard said.

"What are you talking about? That was definitely an eight. I won fair and square!" the second guard retorted.

The third guard stood up and sighed. "I'm going to the kitchen to get something more to drink. It'll get me away from you nutcases."

The vixen was pleased to see that the third guard was walking towards the stairs. Hiding around the corner and far into the shadows she could possibly go, she waited for her prey. The guard was unaware of what he was going into and he walked past where the vixen crouched. Faster than lightning, the vixen grabbed the guard and placed her paw around his mouth, stifling his screams.

"You are going to help me get into Commander Ragas' room and you can keep your life." the vixen whispered. "Do we have an understanding?"

The guard did nothing except give out a lizard-like whimper.

"You know, the last creature tried to hurt me, I had to kill him because we didn't have an understanding. I promise you that he had a slow death."

Finally the guard nodded and the vixen took her paw away from his mouth, but kept the knife into his back. "Tell me, is there any other way to get into Ragas' room besides the entrance?"

The guard shook his head. "Nothing. That door is the only way in." he whispered.

The snow furred fox stayed silent as she thought and the guard quaked in front of her. "There's only one way I can think of. Sorry."

Confusion showed up in the guard's voice as he spoke "What are you sor.."

He didn't finish his sentence as the hilt of the vixen's knife slammed against his skull. The guard fell on the floor cross-eyed. Pulling the guard out of view, the vixen stuck her head around the corner. The three guards were still at the table in front of the Emperor's bed chambers. Drawing out three knives and whispering a silent prayer, the vixen stepped around the corner and raised both of her paws to throw.

Before she released the knives, the door on the left side of the hallway opened and Commander Ragas stepped out rubbing his eyes. The vixen quickly crouched and hid behind the corner, watching the scene unfolding before her.

"Keep the noise down idiots!" Commander Ragas hissed "If you don't I'll use the tail on you!"

The guards bowed multiple of times "Yes Commander! We apologize Commander! May you live forever Commander!"

Ragas rolled his eyes and said "Leave now! You are dismissed from your post. You are not letting anyone sleep in this castle! Go away!"

The guards backing up, fearful of Ragas' wrath quickly turned and ran back down the stairs. The vixen quickly hid behind the corner before the guards ran through and stayed there. A couple of minutes later she heard the door to Commander Ragas' room close and she stuck her head around the corner. Empty!

The vixen breathed a sigh of relief. She rounded the corner and silently approached the door. Cracking her knuckles, she opened the door to Ragas' room. The door opened with a creak, but the figure in Ragas' bed did not stir. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a desk with a set of keys on it and the vixen smiled with accomplishment. Stepping into the room she was halfway to the desk when the door closed suddenly. The vixen turned quickly and immediately felt something wrap around her leg and pull. The snow furred fox fell on her back hard, and she groaned winded.

A light flickered out of the darkness and suddenly a torch was illuminated. The creature holding the torch was nobody other than Commander Ragas himself! The lizard was smiling as he held a gun. The vixen slowly put her paws up and considered her options.

"I wouldn't do anything if I were you." the Commander chuckled. "I have the up on you. You didn't think I would spot you? You must be stupid because you were there clear as day when I came out of this room. I knew that you were after me or the Emperor."

"Then why did you send the guards away if I was after the Emperor?" the fox asked.

"Because there are … nasty surprises in the Emperor's room." Ragas answered "If you ran into them, the Emperor would enjoy slowly killing you. But I'm not that kind of creature. Don't get me wrong, I love to kill. There is no rush you get from killing another creature as you see their life draining away from their body. But with you…. I'm not going to do that. No… In fact I will torture you and then wait until you heal then put you with the slaves. We've been running out of slaves and you seem strong enough." The commander laughed evilly. "You are going to wish you went after the Emperor after all."

The vixen shrunk back against the ground with fear as the evil lizard Commander loomed above her. He raised pulled out his sword and raised the hilt and brought it down on her head. Suddenly everything went black.

Zargos the warrior cat sat miserably in the hole. The heat from the sun beat down upon him. His body deformed with each passing minute, his hunger and thirst growing. But the only thing that did not disappear was the fire in his eyes and his fighting spirit. Zargos imagined the day when he would kill the Commander and the Emperor and rescue everyone from the tyrannical rule. He reveled in his imagination that he didn't hear voices above.

"No, not the slave compound. Let's put her in the hole. She's almost dead anyways. The Commander and the torturer did a number on her."

Zargos head the clank of metal as it was opened. He looked up and saw three figures above him: two lizards and one indistinguishable shape.

"Hey Zargos, guess what! You get to have some creature to take care of! If she dies, I hope that means you get to die too!" The guards laughed as they threw the creature into the hole.

Zargos immediately put his arms out, but he was weak and the figure crashed into him, sending both creatures into the ground. He gently pulled the creature off his body and waited for the guards to leave. As he was sure they were alone, Zargos examined the body and found out that the creature was indeed alive. Grabbing the dwindling medical supplies, Zargos applied them to the cuts and bleeding wounds of the creature. After twenty minutes of cleaning and tending for her, the fox eyes flickered open.

"Hey… Hey, take it easy. My name is Zargos. What's yours?"

The fox searched her mind. What was her name? She finally remembered as she whispered. "Astra."

"Well Astra, don't fret because I promise you, we will get out of here alive."

Astra smiled as Zargos looked at her with concern. Then everything went out of focus and disappeared.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

 _The Lylat System_

Fox McCloud felt the punch before he even saw it coming. The left hook made solid contact with his jaw and the vulpine crashed onto the ground winded. A heavy boot landed on his chest as Fox groaned with pain. Falco took his boot off of Fox and reached down and helped the vulpine up.

"Again!" Falco commanded.

Fox groaned and got ready, his paws clenched and raised. Falco swung another left hook and this time Fox parried the movement with ease and drove a thundering right into Falco's stomach. Falco gasped and fell on one knee and Fox took advantage by driving a right knee towards his face. Falco saw the movement and rolled out of the way. The vulpine and the blue bird circled each other, looking for any open weaknesses that can be exploited. Falco ran towards the vulpine and Fox readied for the incoming attack and as Falco thundered by, Fox jumped out of the way, tripping the blue bird in the process. Falco responded by doing a sweeping leg kick and the vulpine fell on his back. Fox saw Falco raise his boot and before the bird slammed it on his chest once again, Fox rolled out of the way and stood up. The vulpine and the blue bird looked at each other, both panting heavily and Falco finally spoke. "What's up Fox? On a normal day, you would have dismantled me back there. But then again," Falco shrugged, "Krystal was way better than me."

Fox's eyes narrowed. "You know what's happening Falco. We need to contact Star Wolf and figure out Panther's relations to this insignia. We don't even know where they are."

Falco looked down at the ground and responded "Don't worry Fox. Somebody's seen them. We'll catch them."

Pain flashed inside of Fox's head, as was evident through the look on his face. The vulpine groaned softly. Falco took a step towards his friend, his face full of concern. "You alright?" he asked

Fox nodded. "Must have been from the punch on the jaw." He grinned, "You landed that one on the spot."

Falco smiled. "Well, I do have a very good teacher. But watch out! One day I'll beat you. Well, other than today." The blue bird winked.

Fox rolled his eyes. "Just an off day Falco. Don't get a swelled head about it."

"Fox and Falco, please come to the command bridge. Fox and Falco, please come to the command bridge." Peppy said over the intercom.

"Huh. I wonder what that's about." Falco jutted his thumb at the intercom.

Fox sighed and picked up his water bottle and headed towards the command bridge. Falco's footprints could be heard behind him as the blue bird followed. The two friends walked out of the gym and through the winding hallway to the command bridge. Before the command bridge door opened, Fox groaned and fell on his knees, clutching his head.

"Fox! Fox! Are you alright?" Falco asked as he leaned down to check on his friend.

Fox stood up and shook his head. "Yeah Falco. I'm fine. I don't know what happened. I just have a headache. I… just don't know where it's coming from."

Falco nodded slowly and silently. "Make sure you drink some water."

Fox agreed smiling "I will so I don't have to be tended by Dr. Falco again. From what I hear, his experience in the field is atrocious!"

Falco punched the vulpine softly in the shoulder. "You say that again, I'm going to hurt you a lot more."

The command bridge opened and Peppy was seen sitting in the chair observing the Lylat System. When the old hare heard the doors open, he swiveled around and folded his paws across his heavyset frame. "Fox, Falco! I hope your sparring match went well."

"It did gramps. It did. Though Fox could have dismantled me easily. But he wasn't into it." Falco answered.

"I can understand why." Peppy said. "And that is the reason why I called you guys up here. Now Fox, I've been thinking about how we can contact Star Wolf so we can speak with Panther. Since Star Wolf are masters of disappearance, I knew that it would be hard, if not impossible to track them down. But then I remembered…."

"Remembered what Peppy? Anything you can tell us will be of huge help." Fox said eagerly.

Peppy held up his paw and said "I don't even know if it will work. Slippy is working on the connection but remember when the Apariods invaded Corneria and took over General Pepper's ship? You flew on the wing of Wolf's Wolfen fighting them off."

"Yeah. I remember." Fox said, "But what does that have to do with our current situation?"

"Well, after you saved General Pepper's life, you and Wolf were discussing on whether or not you should team up against the Apariod Queen, I may…" Peppy held his paws out, "…or may not have Slippy put on a tracking device on his Wolfen."

"What? Peppy! That's insane! Could you imagine what would happen if Wolf found out? He has enough resources to take the entire Great Fox 5 times over!"

"I realize that Fox, but don't you see? With the tracking device on the Wolfen, we can find Wolf. And where Wolf is, there will certainly be Leon and even Panther. This is a risk we have to take Fox. If we show up out of nowhere, Wolf will suspect something and that creature is no fool."

Fox thought and nodded. "That's the best lead we have. Panther may be the key. No, Panther HAS to be the key, we have to finding if Krystal is in fact alive."

Falco slapped Fox on the back smiling and said, "Right! I'll go check on Slippy. You said that he was working on the connection?"

Peppy nodded. "The tracking device is old since it happened during the Aparoid War. It may or may not even work and Slippy is attempting to pinpoint Wolf's Wolfen location. He's building a second device to try to work since the first one… ah… exploded."

Falco smiled again and turned. The blue bird pressed a button and the command bridge door opened and he walked out of sight.

"Fox. I realize that this may be a bad idea, but like you said it may be the only lead about Krystal that we have." Peppy spoke.

Fox sighed and sat down on the chair. He folded his hands together and replied, "Peppy, this is already difficult for me. I've been struggling with Krystal's death for weeks. But I finally found peace with it. Now to find out that she is alive and through a _dream_ …. It seems a bit far-fetched. Even for us Peppy."

Peppy was silent and then he started to smirk and finally the hare was laughing uncontrollably. Fox looked at the hare with bewilderment. "Peppy… why are you laughing? What's so funny?"

Peppy continued his mirth and between short laughter, he explained "Far-fetched? Far-fetched? Fox! Our _ENTIRE LIVES_ has been far-fetched. Let's see what did we face? We faced Andross in whom you destroyed by blowing up his brain. Then we thought that Andross was dead but in fact he was resurrected by sucking out the life forms of Dinosaur Planet. And guess what happened? You killed him by blowing up his brain _AGAIN._ I can say with certainty that Andross is indeed dead. You also faced and blew up a planet eating insect the size of the Great Fox and nearly gotten killed in the process." Peppy suddenly became serious. "So if we can fight and beat Andross TWICE and the second time he was resurrected, and fight a giant creature-eating insect, then nothing is far-fetched. I do believe that this dream of yours is authentic."

Fox smiled a bit. "You're right Peppy. This does seem normal."

Suddenly, pain flashed through Fox's head and the vulpine crashed down on the ground groaning loudly clutching his head. The pain was undefinable and unbearable. It felt like his head was splitting open and Fox could feel himself losing consciousness. The vulpine groaned loudly as he rolled over on his back and looked into Peppy's concerned eyes. Fox could distinctly hear the old hare calling for Falco and Slippy for help, but then everything went black.

 _Corneria_

Wolf O'Donnell looked at the card and down the stairs. In one motion he threw the card back into the room and rushed down the stairs. He pushed a raccoon out of the way with an indignant "Hey!" as Wolf barreled out of the door. Creatures of all kinds were milling around outside even though it was late in the day. The sun was setting, causing the tiny street to get darker and darker. Wolf's one good eye scanned the area as he looked around, but he saw no one of interest.

"Dang it." Wolf muttered to himself as he holstered his gun.

Turning around, the wolf walked back into the inn. Heading towards the innkeeper serving creatures dinner, Wolf grabbed the creature and slammed him hard against the table, causing his customers to rise out of their chairs with a frightened squeak.

"Did you tell anyone I was here?" Wolf snarled.

"N.. No sir! You left me specific instructions to tell nobody! Please!" the innkeeper pleaded.

Wolf leaned dangerously close to the innkeeper and whispered in his ear. "Make sure you keep it that way, or I will kill you. Do you understand?"

The innkeeper whimpered with fright, then Wolf yelled "Do you UNDERSTAND?"

Finally the creature under Wolf's heavy paw gave a small nod of compliance. Wolf huffed then let go. He turned around and saw other creatures staring. Wolf smiled and winked "I'm sorry everyone, that you had to see all of that. Please forgive me and ah.. my friend. I promise it won't happen again."

Glancing quickly back at the quaking innkeeper, the wolf turned and headed back up the stairs and into his room. Closing the door, Wolf picked up the card that he threw and sat down on the chair. Looking at the front of the card, the insignia was clear: a rose over a fire. Flipping over the card, Wolf noticed that it was empty, no writing or any indication that a creature wrote on the card.

Wolf sighed and rubbed his temples and leaned back into his chair. He looked at the briefcase on the desk and he rose to grab it. He opened the briefcase and the earring was still present and accounted for. Wolf reached in and picked up the earring, taking a moment to marvel its beauty. The earring shone as the light from the fireplace reflected off of it. Wolf was suddenly overcome with the temptation to keep this priceless jewel. He caught himself thinking such thoughts and scolded himself. Although he is a mercenary, Wolf still kept to a code of honor, which was to get the job done, no matter the costs. Unlike Fox McCloud, Wolf O'Donnell only do jobs to earn a profit and to seek glory. He had no interest in helping other creatures, but only himself and his crew.

Wolf sighed as he thought of his loyal crew. _Something better come out of this! Leon and Panther, as thick-headed they are, I still owe them a lot._ The wolf then grunted as he shook his head, bringing himself back to the present. _I must be getting softhearted in my old age_ , the wolf thought, _I am losing my touch_.

Finally the wolf sighed and put it back in the briefcase and he put it next to him. He turned on his communications and contacted Leon and Panther.

Wolf's comrades answered within seconds. After giving the details of what had happened, Leon sighed. "So we are back at another dead end?" the chameleon asked.

Wolf nodded absently. "I'm sorry, but it looks like it. I don't understand what to do with the card. There is nothing on it! I want the money and I want the money now!"

Leon chuckled softly, "Don't we all Wolf? Here, why don't I hit the streets some more and see what I can turn up? A chameleon is less likely to stand out if you know what I mean."

Panther interjected, "And I can check in with my old buddies that I used to hang out with. They usually have the knowledge of what is happening about."

Wolf agreed. "Okay Leon, Panther do exactly what you say that you are going to do. I'm going to stay here and wait for any contact from them."

The communications went silent and Wolf sat back in his chair. He pulled out his gun and rested it on his leg. The wolf then started to fall asleep, but he was on the alert. For years, Wolf had trained himself to always be on the lookout when he was sleeping. He trained his ears to stay sharp and to hear for unwanted intruders.

Finally, Wolf heard pawsteps outside of his room. Feigning sleep, the wolf slowly placed one paw on his gun ready for action. The intruder inched closer and closer to his door. After silence for a couple of minutes, the door creaked slowly opened. Wolf's one good eye shot open and he stood up quickly and as fast as lightning raised his gun to shoot. Luckily, he stayed his trigger-happy finger as a maid stood before him, quaking and clutching towels.

"I'm so sorry to disturb you sir. I thought you were gone and wanted some towels." the maid feebly held the towels out.

"Get out." Wolf answered.

"But sir, t-towels?" the maid squeaked.

Wolf rolled his eyes. _The creatures here are so thick_ he thought. "I said, GET OUT!" the wolf roared.

The maid squeaked with fright and ran out of the room. Wolf heard her pitter pattering pawsteps recede as he breathed heavily, shaking with fury and anticipation. The wolf calmed himself down and sat back down in his chair. Pulling the card out of his pocket, he studied it once more. Anger started to build up as Wolf thought, _How dare they use me to play games! Leaving clues and making me solve riddles!_

The wolf turned and threw the card onto the candle to allow it to burn. However to the wolf's surprise, it wasn't burning at all! It was only hovering in the air as the heat of the candle held it aloft. He looked closely with burning curiosity and noticed that words were appearing on the blank side. Grabbing the card Wolf quickly looked at what the inscription had to say. Finally he smiled and turned on the communications.

"Leon, Panther," the wolf said with excitement, "Meet me at the inn within the hour. I have something to show you. I'll leave you the directions."

The wolf turned off his communication device and reread the card's inscription which merely stated: Wednesday, Pepper Square 3:00PM Bring the Cargo. _Finally! I can have my money!_

 _The Lylat System_

Peppy heard the familiar sounds of Falco's stride echoing through the hallway as he cradled Fox's head in his lap. Falco rushed into the room with Slippy in tow and both gasped at Fox's unconscious state. Both bird and toad immediately went to Peppy's side and helped lift Fox up and carried him to the medical bay. Placing Fox down on the bed, Peppy turned and saw a passing ROB and grabbed the robot's attention.

"ROB can you pilot the Great Fox. Make way for Corneria. We need to put him in the hospital there!"

"Affirmative Peppy." ROB replied as he continued down the hallway.

Falco pressed a button on a key pad and a blue light appeared, scanning Fox's body. A computerized voice said: "There seems to be no injury done to Mr. McCloud. How would you like to proceed?"

"No injuries? That can't be right!" Peppy proclaimed.

"Wait a sec gramps, before he became unconscious, did he clutch at his head and groan or complain if his head was hurting?"

"Yes Falco. He did grab his head and then he was screaming. What does that mean?"

"I don't know Peppy. He did that twice earlier today. Once during our spar, and again before we walked into the bridge. We'll have to keep a careful watch on him." Falco replied. "What state is Fox in?"

The medical computer said "It seems that Mr. McCloud is in a coma. When or how he will come out, I have insufficient data to confirm."

"Okay. I think it's best if we keep him under. If we try to wake him now, who knows what it will do to him. Computer, can you please report to us if there is any unusual brain activity?"

"I will Ace Pilot Lombardi."

Falco, Slippy and Peppy left the medical bay and in complete silence walked back to the command bridge. Each were alone with their thoughts of Fox and how the team would be different if he wasn't there. Fox was the glue that held the team together. He always seemed to have a solution to every problem. ROB the robot was piloting the ship and when the doors open, he spoke "Peppy, since we were at Dinosaur Planet, and are orbiting the planet, we should reach Corneria by Wednesday at the latest if we keep at this speed."

"What about the portal?"

"The portal is still on cool down." ROB answered

"So in four days. Thank you ROB. I can take it from here." Peppy nodded.

"This team keeps breaking apart. First we lose Krystal, then we might lose Fox! What can we do?" Slippy sniffed.

Falco smiled sadly "I think what Fox would want us to do is to continue on the mission that we are on right now. If there is a chance that Krystal IS alive, we should bring her to Fox when he wakes up."

Peppy nodded "I'm game if you are. Slippy, have you gotten that tracker working again? It's vital that we find the crew of Star Wolf."

"I just have a few more adjustments Peppy, then it will be finished!" Slippy replied.

"Good. Now go to it! Please keep at it until it is complete."

After watching the toad bound away from the command bridge and into the hallway, Peppy only felt pride for the toad. Ever since Fox brought him on the team, he constantly faced problems since he did not possess the skills of being a pilot like Fox and Falco. Since Peppy caught Slippy trying to sneak away all those years ago, he took the toad under his wing and mentored him. Peppy was proud to see how the shy toad became the outgoing, eager and inventive creature he saw today.

"… rest and I'll take it from here." Falco was saying.

Peppy left his thoughts and looked at Falco "I'm sorry Falco. I wasn't listening."

Falco smiled, "You are getting old gramps and that comes with deafness. I was saying that you should get some rest and I'll make sure that the Great Fox gets to Corneria safely."

Peppy chuckled softly "Yes. That's a good idea. I am old after all." The hare grunted as he got up from the seat and started walking out of the command bridge. As the door opened, he turned and looked back at the blue bird. "Falco?"

"Yeah gramps?"

"With Fox in the medical bay and Krystal gone, possibly dead, we need you more than ever. This leadership role falls to you and I believe that is what Fox would've wanted."

Falco smiled and swiveled in the chair as he looked across the room at the old hare. "Don't worry gramps. I'll always be here. This team is my home."

Peppy smiled sadly as he left the command bridge. On his way back to his room, he looked through the window to the medical bay at the sleeping vulpine. "Please Fox, come back to us." the hare whispered "You still have much more life to give."

The Great Fox flew silently through space as the stars lit a pathway for the giant ship. Slippy Toad worked tirelessly on the tracker that he would use to find Star Wolf. Peppy Hare was fast asleep in his room, momentarily pushing the worries of the events away from his mind. Falco Lombardi sat in silence as he watched space fly by, alone in his thoughts.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

 _Corneria_

Wolf paced around the room clutching at the card, thoughts racing through his head. _Who are they? Could they be the thieves I ripped off? No, I made sure the trail didn't lead up to us. Who are they?_ The lupine stopped pacing and took several minutes to gather his thoughts. He then sat back down on his chair, inspecting the card. Nothing struck out to him as odd or out of the ordinary, but his eye kept straying back to the insignia on the card. _Rose over a flame_ the wolf thought, _where have I seen this before?_

The leader of Star Wolf sighed and threw the card on the table next to him. He stood up and grabbed a bottle of scotch and poured himself a cup. Throwing his head back, Wolf downed the scotch in one go. He smacked his lips and ignored the burning in the back of his throat. _What does it mean?_ He thought, his mind still obsessed on the insignia. Pouring himself another cup, the wolf threw it down in one gulp, and exhaled. The lupine put the lid back on the bottle and put it away, turned around and stared absently into the fireplace. _What is it?_

The realization hit him like a lightning bolt. _That scum! I'm going to kill him!_ Wolf swore to himself. He slammed his fist down on the table in anger, and felt the pain of betrayal stab himself in his heart. The leader of Star Wolf reveled in the imagination of what he was going to do to the unlucky creature that betrayed him, until a knock pulled him out of his dreaming. The door opened and a chameleon and panther walked in. Panther closed the door behind him and sat down on the stool, across from Wolf, in front of the fireplace. Leon opted for a chair that was in front of the window and he collapsed with a sigh. Silently, Wolf handed Leon the card who looked at it and read the inscription. Without a word, the chameleon handed the card to Panther for further inspection.

The Star Wolf team sat and stared at each other in silence as the fire raged on in the fireplace. Finally, Panther stood up, walked to the table next to the lupine and broke the silence while placing the card back on the table. "Wednesday. That's in three days. Wolf, why do I have a bad feeling about this?"

Wolf's one eye gazed with ferocity at the panther causing the feline to sit back down slowly. "I don't know Panther. You tell me."

"What do you mean Wolf? I don't understand."

"You know what I mean Panther. Back at the space station, you recognized the insignia. Now that I think about it, I recognize the insignia too. It was on your own Wolfen! How did I not realize this?"

"Wait Wolf. You are not suggesting that-" Leon started in an attempt to stop what was happening.

"Panther is working with someone who wants this earring." Wolf finished.

"Wolf, I-" Panther started.

Faster than lightning, the grey wolf grabbed Panther and slammed him against the table. Leon jumped up quickly, startled and Panther struggled momentarily against Wolf's iron grip.

"You are going to tell me and you are going to tell me right now." Wolf growled. "If you say something that I like, then I'll think about keeping you on the team. You do _not_ want to be kicked off the team." His one eye looked at Leon warning him not to do anything and the chameleon stood frozen in place. "We all know how you can get off the team, and that's in a body bag." Wolf leaned in and whispered dangerously in Panther's ear "So I would get started talking cat!"

"I don't know anything! I swear Wolf!" Panther groaned.

The feline felt his head being raised by Wolf's hand and with one powerful movement felt it slam against the flat table. Stars flashed before the panther's eyes and Panther nearly passed out due to the pain. A dull throbbing started to flare up in the cat's head and Panther had to bite his lip from crying out. Showing any sign of weakness before the dangerous mercenary, Panther knew, would be an invitation to more thrashing.

"Not the right answer Panther. Try again." Wolf said.

"Stop Wolf! Why do you think Panther would do something like this? Steal an earring from us? He's been a loyal crew member since day one!" Leon pleaded. "Besides, it's probably only a coincidence!"

"A coincidence?" Wolf growled as Panther nodded weakly under his paw. "I don't believe in coincidences Leon! That's the reason I'm still alive." The wolf turned back to Panther and said "One more time. Who does the insignia belong to and are you working with them?"

Panther groaned and replied "The insignia is my family crest. Everyone's dead but me. When I was a kitten, we were caught in a raid in the Rix sector and everyone was wiped out! I don't know how any creature would have gotten this insignia. Please Wolf! I'm telling the truth!"

Wolf glared at Panther and after a couple tense moments, he finally let go. Leon gave out a sigh of relief. When Wolf becomes angry, his anger can get out of control and it could turn ugly really quick. If Panther hadn't answered his questions, he probably wouldn't have lived to tell the tale. Although Panther was afraid of his team leader, Wolf, the feline was terrified of losing his life.

"Alright Panther. I believe you. But if you do us wrong, I swear-" Wolf breathed heavily still shaking from his rage.

"I'm not doing you any wrong Wolf! I promise. The insignia is my family's crest and I have no idea how some other creature got it. Since my family was well known in the Rix sector, there would still be enemies coming after me. That's why I change my symbol a single rose on the Wolfen. But I admit that the rose over the fire is my family crest."

The three members of Star Wolf sat around staring at each other. Panther placed his paws on his head and massaged it, attempting to reduce the headache that was building up. Leon only sat in silence, unsure of what to do. Wolf's one eye was fixed on the fire as the his mind raced, trying to figure out how the pieces of the puzzle fit with each other.

After a couple of minutes, Leon finally spoke up "So what are we going to do about this Wolf? Are we going to bring the cargo to Pepper Square, wherever that is?"

"Pepper Square. Named after the Conerian General Pepper. That was the spot where General Pepper crashed landed during the Aparoid War, but Peppy"… Wolf's voice started rising with anger as his fist beat down on the desk, "of…. The… STAR FOX TEAM!" The wolf paused to catch a breath, "saved our distinguished general from his misery. Fox McCloud. How I loathe his smug face! Almost makes me feel sorry for them that Krystal is dead. Almost. There wouldn't be anything I would do to destroy him!"

"So you say," Leon chuckled "So you say, but you had the nerve to help him in the Aparoid War. Twice nonetheless!" The chameleon then realized that he had chosen the wrong moment to speak up as the wolf turned and stared him down. The chameleon slinked further and further back into his chair, wishing that the chair would swallow him whole.

"I HAD to help him Leon! Don't you understand? If the Apariods won, the entire galaxy would have been destroyed. Destroyed galaxy means Star Fox died. If Star Fox died, then I won't have my chance!"

Wolf's anger suddenly subsided and he sighed tiredly. "Yes Leon. We will follow exactly as the card says. Wednesday at 3:00 pm in Pepper Square. There's only one problem."

Panther grunted as he continued to rub his temples. "When do we never have problems Wolf? Please do tell!"

"3:00 at Pepper Square is the problem. There's a lot of creatures milling around. Ever since Corneria rebuilt from the Aparoid Invasion, they rebuild a lot of the housing around the square. Now it's the ideal location to cross in order to get to work or the markets."

Realization set upon Leon "This is a trap. There will be a lot of creatures and we don't even know what he or she looks like!"

Wolf nodded. "That means I need you and Panther to be on the building surrounding the square. There are two high-rises on both sides. I need you to take one of the buildings in order to keep a watch out. This could be a trap for all I know. But I do know one thing. We are involved in something bigger than the three of us."

"What happens if something goes wrong during the transaction?" Panther asked.

Both Leon and Panther looked at their leader shake his head as he muttered to himself. Wolf stood up and stretched, loosening the muscles that had tightened in his back. He checked to make sure that his gun was still holstered and walked silently to the counter. Pulling out three cups and the same bottle of scotch Wolf drank earlier. _Leon's right_ Wolf thought while he poured the scotch in each cup _I need a backup plan._ He gave each cup to Leon and Panther while keeping the third and final cup to himself. After taking a swig and finishing his drink, Wolf poured himself another cup and walked slowly back to the chair and slowly sat down.

After downing that drink he had in his paw, Wolf leaned back in his chair as his mind raced. Leon and Panther nervously looked at their leader because they knew that Wolf was planning something. Finally Wolf leaned forward, took off his eyepatch, showing the scar through his eye that he suffered those many years ago.

Wolf sighed painfully. "As much as I hate to say it, but I think Star Fox will be our best shot."

 _The Lylat System: A couple of days later_

The Great Fox stealthily flew across the vast openness of space towards Corneria. Falco Lombardi sat next to the sleeping figure of his best friend, Fox McCloud in the medical bay. Peppy Hare walked in the hallway and looked through the window at the unmoving blue bird. The aging hare sighed sadly as he continued walking towards Slippy's workshop. A variety of noises came out of the workshop as Peppy approached closer and closer. As he rounded the corner to enter the room, the old hare ducked suddenly as a screw flew towards him and hit the wall, clattering down on the floor. Peppy reached down and picked it up before walking into the room. Slippy croaked angrily as he threw down his screwdriver.

"I can't get this to work. I can't get anything to work!" the toad muttered to himself upset. "Why do they always explode? Why?" Slippy sat back down in the chair tiredly. Even though the toad woke up from his sleep a couple of hours earlier, the stress of attempting to build an exact replica to the tracking device and Fox's unconsciousness was taking a toll on him.

Peppy slowly walked in and placed a paw on Slippy's shoulder. The toad looked behind him startled. "Hey Peppy. I didn't hear you walk in."

Peppy smiled. "Hello Slippy. How's it going? Will you be able to get it done before we get to Corneria?"

Slippy sighed and shook his head. "I'd be lying if I said that I would be able to. I just don't know how to get this piece of junk to work!"

"Sometimes the easiest solution is to take the time to think." Peppy said helpfully.

Slippy snorted "That's easy for you to say Peppy. You are not working on this after all, I am."

Peppy looked hurt. "I'm sorry Slippy, I was only trying to help. I guess that you didn't need it. So, I'll leave you alone for you to continue."

As the old hare turned to head back to the hallway, Slippy realized his mistake. "I'm sorry Peppy. I didn't mean to talk back to you. The stress of everything is getting to my head."

Peppy nodded understandingly. "I know Slippy. We all miss him. Hopefully, he'll come back to us sooner than later."

"How's Falco doing?"

"Hasn't left Fox's side for the past two days. Claimed he wanted to be there when Fox wakes up."

Slippy smiled. "I admire his loyalty and optimism. Falco has high hopes. But with each passing day, that hope is diminishing Peppy. I don't know how much longer Fox has. We need to prepare him."

"For what?"

"We need someone to lead the team. I know it's going to be Falco. Fox would have wanted that." Slippy answered.

Peppy nodded. "That's what I told him. But he's holding on hope."

"Hope is a hard thing to have these days."

"I guess we have to imitate Falco. We should just have hope. Having false hope can be better than having no hope at all."

Slippy nodded. "That's very true Peppy. Say, when did you become so wise?"

Peppy laughed "Since I became this old Slippy! Since I became this old. You'll reach it someday."

Slippy chuckled also. "Not soon I hope! I still have some years of youth left! Alright Peppy, I better get back to this and figure it out if we are to find Star Wolf!"

Peppy slapped the toad on the back heartily "That's the spirit Slippy! Let me know of the progress!"

Slippy nodded and concentrated on his work. He did not hear Peppy's footsteps as the hare exited the room. He looked at the device he was building and sighed audibly. The device was simple to make, Slippy knew, it was tapping into the wavelength that was required to find the Wolfen that was difficult. The toad picked the device up and observed the exploded remnants of it. Slippy sighed and threw it back on the table dejectedly. _I need to close my eyes for a couple of seconds_ Slippy thought, _Maybe Peppy will be right. I should not overthink it._

The room was quiet and everything was smooth except for the occasional bump of an odd space debris hitting the Great Fox. All around the toad laid various pieces of inventions that he started on but never got to finish. One such invention was a watch that allowed the user to shapeshift into different kinds of specie. Ever since Slippy joined the Star Fox team, he knew that he would visit different planets and see different kinds of creatures. On his journey with the Star Fox team, Slippy took careful records on the different creatures that he had met. The toad worked on the device but gave up after a while as he couldn't figure out how to initiate the shapeshifting process. Slippy accomplished in shapeshifting into a dog the first test run, but he couldn't get any other creature. So now the watch lay, unfinished on the workbench for the toad hoped to complete it sometime in the future.

Suddenly an idea hit Slippy and the toad woke up with a start. He stood up quickly jogged to a set of shelves at the back of the room and rummaged through his "pile of junk" as Falco called it. Slippy found offense to such name as he viewed them as his treasures, but exacted revenge on the blue bird by putting itching powder in his clothes while he took a shower. The plan resulted in Falco apologizing to the toad and swearing that he be nicer. The toad found the pieces he was looking for and set to work. _A screw here and I need to connect these wires. Now I got to calibrate this with that. There! It should work!_ In Slippy's hands were the device that he was attempting to make complete with the tracker. The toad admired his quick work and excitedly but carefully placed down his work on the table. Slippy then grabbed his comms and switched it to Peppy's channel.

"Peppy! Come down here quick! I think I can target the Wolfen! I think I got it!"

"That's wonderful Slippy! ROB, take over. I'll be right back!"

Slippy heard the robotic voice over his comms as Peppy said "I'll be right there Slippy. Just don't break it!"

"Ha ha ha, very funny." Slippy said sarcastically.

After a couple of minutes, Peppy appeared to see an impatient toad pacing back and forth. "Slippy! Did you figure it out? Where is he?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I took your advice and I did not overthink. After a couple of minutes snoozing, I realized that with every tracker I built, I placed a computer chip into it, a J-447 model computer chip to be exact. Did you know that computer chip is the most powerful chip in the entire galaxy? It has the ability to run.."

"Slippy, the tracker. You can tell me about the J-44 whatever later. Right now, we need to find Wolf." Peppy interrupted, stopping the toad from rambling.

"Right! So each device is connected to a specific computer chip because it's run off a specific wavelength. So you have the computer chip emitting a wave and the device is looking for the wave. Then presto! You have the location!"

"So the device is looking for the computer chip? How does this help us in this situation?" Peppy asked.

"Precisely! This helps us perfectly because I tried building a device to look for a computer chip. But I couldn't find the right wavelength to tap into since the device wasn't designed for that SPECIFIC computer chip. Hence the device and the tracker. I built them just now. So, if I can have a computer chip emit a specific wavelength and manipulate the tracker to capture the OTHER wavelength on the Wolfen.."

Understanding appeared on Peppy's face "You will be tracking two different computer chips on the same wavelength. The one that you are holding right now and the one that is on the Wolfen. That's brilliant Slippy! Give it a shot!"

Slippy smiled and he turned a knob on the device and looked at the tracker. One blip, but not a second. Slippy turned it again. Still one blip, but not a second. Slippy tried again five times with Peppy watching over his shoulders to the same results. Slippy sat down frustrated. "It's no use Peppy, I've failed again."

"Don't say that Slippy! You tried your best, I know you did." the old hare said comfortingly.

Slippy sighed "Thank you Peppy. I guess that we will have to accept the fact that we will never find Wolf. We'll have to find a different lead. Let's go, I need something to eat."

Peppy nodded and helped Slippy out of his chair. As the two friends were about to leave the workshop, the Great Fox rocked against the impact of a space debris.

"And that's the asteroid field that we are going through." Peppy said.

"Did you say asteroid field? That's it Peppy! That's the reason why we couldn't get a lock on the Wolfen! The wavelength is being scrambled because it's being bounced off the asteroids! How recent did we enter?"

"Maybe ten or fifteen minutes ago. In fact, we should be coming out of it soon." Peppy answered. As soon as the hare replied to the question, the two friends heard a loud beeping coming from the tracker. The toad excitedly ran to the tracker and looked at it. Slippy turned to Peppy. "I know where Wolf is. He's in the same place we are heading for. Corneria."

Falco Lombardi stood up and stretched from his chair in the medical bay. Fox McCloud laid on the bed breathing softly and Falco watched his friend sleeping peacefully. _I need to do something_ Falco thought. _I'm driving myself crazy here. I know. I'll go check on Peppy._ The blue bird exited the medical bay and strolled through the hallway and into the cockpit.

The cockpit was empty. _Huh. Peppy must be sleeping in his room_. He saw ROB piloting the ship and spoke "Hey ROB. Have you seen Peppy?"

The robot answered without looking back at the bird "Affirmative Falco. Peppy is downstairs with Slippy in the engineer room.

"Thanks ROB. Can you run another diagnostics check on the Great Fox? I want to make sure that everything is up to date for whatever we might be facing."

"Yes Falco." ROB stood up from the chair and left the bridge. Falco walked over to the captain's chair and sat down, feeling mildly uncomfortable. _I don't want to take this position away from you Fox._

As the Great Fox sped towards Corneria, Falco punched in the code for autopilot. After the ship shuddered, noting the switch, the blue bird backed up in the chair and stood up. He checked his pockets, making sure that he wasn't forgetting everything. Falco turned and walked towards the door. As he walked across the command bridge-

 _Falco…._

Startled, the blue bird turned and looked behind him to the chair. Nobody was there. After remaining silent for a couple of minutes, and looking around, Falco shrugged and continued his way to the door.

 _Falco…. Falco…_

Falco stopped once more. _It's definitely not my imagination_ he thought as he looked around. As usual, there was nobody in the room save for him. Falco nervously placed a wing on his gun as he waited even more.

 _Falco… find me._

The blue bird looked around rapidly as the voice was getting louder.

 _HURRY!_

Suddenly the door to the command bridge slid open and Falco pulled out his gun. Peppy and Slippy jumped behind the wall shielding their bodies with fright. Falco breathed heavily as he kept the gun trained at the door. Finally Slippy spoke up "Hey Falco. Do you mind, you know, putting your gun down?"

Falco shook his head and noticed that he still had his gun drawn. "Um, yeah Slippy. Sorry for scaring you."

The hare popped his head out from behind the wall. "Are you doing okay Falco? Is there anything going on with you?"

 _Besides Fox passing out and me hearing things? Things are just sweet!_ The blue bird thought. "No Peppy, everything is fine. I think I'm just tired. With Fox oblivious to the world, and Krystal dead, but possibly alive, the stress are getting to me." The blue bird turned to Slippy. "Did you have any luck?"

Slippy beamed "Sure did Falco! I know where Star Wolf is. Wolf and his team is down on Corneria, if this thing is correct."

Falco smiled "Good job Slippy. At least we are on the right track for once! Tell you what, I'm going to check on Fox then I'm going to take a nap. Wake me up if anything happens, or when we get to Corneria."

"Take a nap?" Slippy asked "But weren't... Ow!"

Peppy punched the toad, not so softly on the shoulder, shaking his head.

Peppy nodded. "Will do Falco."

As the blue bird walked out of the command room and through the hallway, a small voice crept into his head once more.

 _Falco…._ The voice whimpered _Please come. Need Fox._

The blue bird looked around and nobody was with him. Falco sighed and shook his head as he continued down the hallway towards the medical bay. _I must be going crazy because I'm tired. That's it. I'm just stressed and tired and I am not hearing voices._

 _Falco…. No energy…. Hurry here._

Falco groaned as he hurried down the hallway. _Please leave me alone_! He thought, and the voice was silent. After remaining silent for a couple more minutes, Falco didn't hear the voice once again and soon, the blue bird pushed the incident out of his mind.

Falco arrived at the medical bay and Fox was still unconscious on the bed. Looking on the monitors, Falco was relieved that nothing has changed for the worst, but was also worried that Fox wasn't getting any better. The blue bird pulled a chair out and placed it next to the bed of his friend. Sitting down, Falco listened to the gentle humming of the Great Fox as the giant ship continue to fly through space. His eyes became heavier and heavier by the minute and before he knew it, Falco was snoring.

 _The first thing he noticed was the darkness. The air was cool and damp and it sent shivers up his spine. His face was wet from the moisture of the air. Looking around, he couldn't see anything save for the fact that he was lying on his back and around his paws were chains. As he tried to move, the chains remained steadfast and it quickly ceased his struggles. After several minutes of fighting, he gave up and sighed dejectedly._

 _Minutes dragged into hours and hours into days as he remained lying on the floor bound by chains. The vulpine gave another feeble attempt at freeing himself and suddenly he felt one chain snap! With astonishment, Fox McCloud looked at his other paw and tried again. The chain snapped and soon, within moments he was free. Fox stood up and dusted himself off as he looked around. Darkness crept upon him and Fox felt a presence that he hadn't felt in a long time. A presence that he knew was familiar, but couldn't place._

 _Fox started walking in a random direction. The vulpine didn't know where he was going, but he knew that he had to leave wherever he was. Only one thing fueled his drive and that was love. He just wanted to find her and bring her close. He wanted to hear her voice once more and he was willing to give up everything for it to happen. Fox wanted her to touch his cheek, pull him into a hug and assure that everything was okay. Sadness and pain weighed heavily in his heart, and the vulpine couldn't take it anymore. He knelt down on dark, hard ground and started to weep. Soon, the weeping led to wailing which turned into a long drawn out scream._

 _His reserves was exhausted and Fox fell on the ground and continued to cry. As he closed his eyes to fall asleep, the ground started to shake. The startled vulpine woke up with a start and stood up. Cracks opened up in the ground and smoke started to fly up. Fox backed up nervously, eyeing the events unfolding before him. The smoke gathered together and turned into a huge monster. The monster roared and started to fly to the awe-struck vulpine._

 _Fox turned around and started to run away. As he did, he immediately felt regret and guilt. He thought back to the time when he was searching for his beloved on the planet she crash-landed on. Although Falco had knocked him out and brought him back to the Great Fox, the vulpine still gave up._ Not anymore. _Fox thought bravely. He turned around, and faced the towering creature of smoke. The smoke willed its claw to become solid, raised it up and brought it down. Fox closed his eyes, ready to accept his fate, because he accepted his failure to be a leader, friend, possible boyfriend and mentor. The vulpine stood, staying his ground, ready to leave the world._

 _Suddenly a blinding light flashed across his face and Fox instinctively pulled his hands in front of his eyes to block the light. He heard the creature roar in pain and the vulpine could see it retreating back into the darkness. As the light dimmed, Fox focused on the figure._

 _Standing there was a blue-furred vixen with turquoise eyes. As Fox saw her, he wept as he felt months of stress and worry leaving his shoulders. The vixen reached out and lightly touched Fox's face and Fox looked up into the deep and loving eyes of Krystal. "Fox," her musical voice said, "It's alright. I'm here."_

 _Fox looked with confusion at the vixen. "But… how? What was that thing?"_

 _"_ _A creature of darkness, from Cerinia. Because of our relationship, the creature goes after you. He appears in dreams and feeds off guilt, anger and regret of past mistakes. But once fought off, he will never come back."_

 _"_ _Krystal, I-" Fox started_

 _Krystal shushed him. "I don't have a lot of time. Every time I reach out to you in your dreams, has made me weaker and weaker. But Fox, please find me. Help her. I am locked away. I tried reaching out to Falco, but it hasn't worked."_

 _"_ _Her? Who are you talking about?"_

 _Krystal furrowed her eyebrows with concentration. "Someone, or something very powerful. I don't know who she is, but you need to come. You need to help her and I will truly be free."_

 _The vulpine shook his head and reached out to touch her. "Locked away? Where? I don't understand. Tell me where you are!"_

 _Krystal flickered. "She's waking up. I'm sorry Fox. This might be my last time to connect you. You are my only hope and my hero. If anyone can do it, YOU can Fox. Look for her, help her and free me."_

 _"_ _Krystal, WAIT!"_

 _A light flashed and his beloved disappeared. Darkness surrounded the vulpine once again, as Fox slowly sat down on the ground. He smiled to himself, then started to laugh which lead into cheering. His loved one was still alive and Fox felt like he was on the top of the world!_

 _The celebration was short lived, for Fox felt a pain in his head, except that it was more powerful and fiercer than before. The vulpine grabbed his head as he tried to bear the pain. The pain stopped immediately as it started and Fox groaned. He sighed, looked up and what he saw made him gasp with shock. He was standing on top of a castle battlement and looking down below, war was happening._

 _Fire was burning everywhere and bodies of creatures laid dead on the ground. Fox scrunched his nose at the horrible smell and tried to move, but he found himself frozen in the spot. All the vulpine could do was watch helplessly at the scene unfolding before him. He heard a gunshot and Fox turned in the direction and gasped as a laser sped towards him. Fox attempted to duck, but was too late as the laser hit him in the chest and went clean through his body. The pain was unbearable but the vulpine was pleased to see that he was still alive._

 _Fox looked around and noticed his friends. Falco and Slippy was fighting for their lives but they were hopeless. The numbers of enemies were overwhelming. Explosions and sounds of laser fire echoed through the field. Suddenly Fox looked to his right on the battlement and saw a female vixen, white as snow engaging in a fight with a dark figure. She was nimble and very agile dodging every strike while landing some of her own_

 _As he watched, he felt a need to help the vixen but Fox found that he could not move. The vixen dodged an attack with a roll, but the dark figure responded with a sweep of his spear and it threw the vixen off her balance. With dismay, he saw the vixen fall with a cry of fear and the dark figure picked her up and threw her off the battlement. Fox's cry was caught in his throat as she fell over the edge and out of sight. Turning his focus back to the battle, he noticed that it was over. Falco was lying injured by the wall and Slippy laid dead next to him._

 _The dark figure walked slowly to the fallen bird and laughed. Falco was spewing out insults after insults at the figure. The dark figure then picked up Falco's gun and admired it for a minute. Then he turned and with one shot silenced Falco. Fox's cry was muted as he saw his best friend's life being snuffed out. Suddenly everything around him froze. Nobody was moving except for the vulpine. A voice appeared and echoed throughout his dream._

 _"_ _Find me. Save me. Do not lose hope. Never lose hope…."_

Fox McCloud woke up with a start clutching at his chest and screaming. Falco woke up immediately and rushed to his friend's side to help restrain him. Fox looked at his friend and said "Either I'm dead and I'm in heaven or you're still alive!"

Falco laughed "If this was heaven, then it's a horrible place to be. Of course I'm still alive!'

Fox could only chuckle and Falco sat back down in his chair. "Well, guess who decided to join us in the land of the living."

Fox smiled "Hey Falco. It's good to see you too. How… how long have I been out?'

"Three days." Falco answered. "We were escorting you to Corneria for medical help. We should be approaching the planet anytime soon. But now, how are you feeling?"

"Like I took the flight launch simulator at the hardest difficulty ten times."

Falco groaned "I hated that part during our training."

Fox looked at him, as the dream rushed back to him. "Falco…" he started.

The medical bay doors opened and Slippy rushed in looking at his tablet. "Falco! We are approaching Corneria! We better get ready to land."

"Okay Slippy. Thanks! We'll be right there." Falco answered.

"Hello Slippy, good to see you too." Fox said.

"Hey Fox." The toad answered as he turned around. In a flash, the toad spun and looked at his friend with shock. "FOX! You're awake! Guess what? I figured out where Star Wolf is! He's on Corneria. And we just happen to be going to Corneria!"

Falco laughed at Slippy's excitement "Slow down Slippy. Fox needs his rest."

Fox shook his head. "I don't. I'm good and ready to go. I don't need any more rest."

Slippy nodded quickly, "I'll go and let Peppy know you are awake." The toad turned to Falco and said "Speaking of Peppy, he wants you on the command bridge immediately for briefing."

Fox nodded. "Go ahead Falco. I'll catch up to you."

The blue bird nodded. "You sure? You looked like you wanted to say something before Slippy interrupted us."

Fox thought for a moment. "You know what Falco? It doesn't matter right now. You better go to the bridge. I'll be there."

The vulpine left the medical bay and walked back to his room. He entered his room and went into the bathroom. After splashing water on his face and cleaning up a bit, the vulpine picked up Krystal's staff that he placed on the desk. Fox attached the staff to his back and then he left the room.

The vulpine walked through the hallway, his mind still set on his dream and Krystal. _I will always fight for the both of us._ Then Fox remembered the snow-furred vixen fighting the dark figure and he felt a need to help her. _But I have no idea where she is or who she is but I have a feeling I will see her again._

As the fox walked through the hallway, he ran into a panicked Slippy and a shocked Falco. "What's wrong?" the vulpine asked.

"The communicator. He's calling." Slippy said catching his breath.

"Who's calling? I don't understand." Fox replied.

"Wolf."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

 _Corneria_

"5 hours left Wolf!"

After hearing the statement from the chameleon, Wolf opened his one eye and sat up straighter in the chair. He stretched, loosening the stiff muscles and settled back into the chair. The lupine sighed as weariness started to creep back into him. The past couple of days was very difficult for the wolf, and he knew that he wasn't young anymore. Pushing the thought of age away, Wolf reached for the bottle and ignoring the cup that sat next to it, opened the lid and started to drink.

Leon saw the movement and did nothing to stop him. The chameleon knew that his leader loved the drink and had experienced the outcome of it. Leon respected Wolf and left him alone to do what he wanted to do. But when it came to the drink, Leon always had his guard up because his leader became very unpredictable when it came to the team and the mission. Wolf would either come up with brilliant plans, or could doom the team with his temper, all because of his drink. But at this moment, Leon's gut told him to leave the lupine alone, so the chameleon settled back in front of the fire place.

The door opened and Panther walked in. Making eye contact with his leader, the panther only shook his head. Wolf sighed again and took another swig out of his bottle. Panther's tail swished slowly as he slowly walked back to the table. The black panther sat down next to Leon and watched Wolf drink without stopping. He leaned in and whispered to the chameleon. "Is this wise?"

Leon could only shrug. "I don't know. He gets many of his best ideas from the bottle."

Panther shook his head. "But many of his ideas always endanger us! We make the drop in 5 hours and we need him at the top of his game."

Leon slowly nodded his head. "And that comes from the drink."

"But Leon. I'd rather keep my life, rather than lose it! You know the drink always influence his temper! Especially when it comes to his favorite alcohol!"

"Panther! You know why he's drinking. It's all because of-"

The sound of broken glass interrupted the conversation between Leon and Panther. Both creatures slowly looked at the wall where liquid was trickling down and saw the glass shards on the floor. Wolf had overheard them talking and threw the bottle at the wall with fury. He stood up with surprisingly good balance for someone who was supposed to be drunk after drinking hard liquor.

With a clear voice, Wolf spoke "Don't you say their name Leon!"

Leon wisely closed his mouth as Wolf fixed his one eye upon the chameleon. Finally the lupine sat back down and stared at the fireplace. Panther rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair, his footpaws on the table as he enjoyed the warmth of the fireplace. The coziness and the comfort of the fire slowly dragged the panther to sleep. Leon stood up, walked over to the room door, opened it and left.

Nervousness and anticipation started to creep in onto the lupine. Wolf hated those feelings because he wanted to be sure on everything he was going to do. But when it came to the Star Fox team, Wolf O' Donnell was always unprepared for what happened next.

 _Corneria - few_ days _ago_

"As much as I hate to say it, but I think Star Fox will be our best shot."

Leon and Panther stared at their leader for a couple of minutes, then they broke the heavy silence with laughter. Leon was hissing loudly and Panther was holding his sides. The two members of Star Wolf team laughed and laughed while Wolf watched them in silent rage. Finally Leon was the first one to stop laughing, although Panther was still chuckling.

The chameleon wiped tears from his eyes and exclaimed. "Ask Star Fox for help? That's the funniest joke I have ever heard!"

Panther suddenly became serious. "Wolf, I respect you. I admire you, even. I would give up my life to save yours. You and Leon are my family and we survive because of your leadership and your intelligence." Panther then couldn't hold in his laughter "But asking the Star Fox team for help is the dumbest thing I have ever heard while being on this team." The panther roared with laughter and fell out of his chair still hitting the floor as tears streamed down his face.

Wolf continued sitting on his chair, with his arms folded, breathing heavily to control his rage. Finally with his two powerful paws, he grabbed the chameleon and the panther's heads and not so gently rammed them against each other. Panther's laughter was cut short as pain flashed through his skull and Leon groaned as he nursed his eye.

"Not the eye Wolf. Why does it always have to be the eye?"

"Yeah Wolf! Why'd you do that? You know my face is the best thing I've got going!" Panther complained. "Now the bruising is going to ruin it for a couple of weeks!"

Wolf snarled "I'll ruin something more if you don't stop!"

Panther rubbed his head gently, testing the pain. He finally got back in his chair and studied the face of his leader. "You are serious aren't you?"

Wolf sighed and nodded. "I am."

"But that's crazy!" Leon exclaimed. "What will it look like? Us asking our mortal enemies for help? They'll know that we are weak and they'll take advantage of it!"

Panther sighed. "I'm sorry Wolf. I have to agree with Leon. It doesn't make sense for us to ask Star Fox for help. We have been doing fine and we are doing fine now."

"I know that Panther and under different circumstances, I would agree with you."

"What circumstances? We have to take an earring to the drop spot and avoid the trap. Easy."

Wolf growled. "Nothing is easy, remember that. Especially when it comes to asking for help. Trust me Panther, if we can ally ourselves with the Star Fox team, just for this job, we have a higher chance of surviving. Besides, if the trap is real and it happens that Fox McCloud gets caught in the crossfire, the better."

"But I thought that you wanted to be the one to kill him?" Leon asked.

"Oh I do, but if he dies instead of us? That way is better.

"Hmmmm. Allying with the Star Fox team would not be the smartest choice. But it does give us the chance to survive and draw the fire to them." Leon admitted

"I still don't like this." Panther spoke up. "What if the Star Fox team is sided with whoever wants the earring? What if allying ourselves with them causes our downfall?"

Wolf smirked. "Star Fox is definitely not with these animals. They have 'honor' or whatever it's called that is guiding them. They would never be involved with this."

Leon sighed. "Then it's settled. We call them tomorrow.

The Star Wolf team left the room and retreated to their own except for Wolf O' Donnell. The wolf's mind raced, coming up with different plans based off possible actions that could happen.

 _The Lylat System- Present day._

"Wolf is calling us right now." The blue bird said.

"What do you mean Wolf is calling right now?" Fox asked incredulously.

"I mean that your biggest rival is calling the Great Fox right now. Wolf is trying to establish contact with us." Slippy answered.

"Slippy, do you think that they discovered the tracker on the Wolfen? Could that be the reason why they are calling?"

"That thought did enter my mind, but knowing Wolf's temper, he would have attacked us immediately. No, this is about something else."

"Maybe it's to do with the insignia that we found?" Falco suggested.

"Only one way to find out." Fox answered crossing his arms. "Slippy, reroute the call to the cockpit of the Great Fox then meet us on the command bridge. Falco, come with me. As much as I don't like it, we are going to have to answer him."

The toad ran in the opposite direction towards the communicator room while Fox and Falco walked silently through the hallway. The blue bird looked at his best friend and noticed something different about the vulpine. Only a few days ago, Fox was still broken over Krystal's death and still was left to pick up the pieces. Only then did the vulpine finally collect himself, but hearing that Krystal could still be alive caused him to fall apart once again.

But now? Falco could only admire his best friend in mute admiration. This time Fox was walking with confidence and bravado. The vulpine looked like he was ready to conquer anything. _I wonder what he saw when he was in that coma._ Falco wondered. The blue bird raised his arm and rested it across Fox's shoulders. The vulpine looked up and said. "What's up?"

Falco could only shrug. "Just glad that you are back in the land of living."

The two best friends arrived at the door to the cockpit of the Great Fox. Fox looked at his loyal, unwavering friend and smiled. "Let's get to the bottom of this."

The door slid open and both creatures walked in. Peppy arose from the chair with an excited, yet confused look on his face. "Fox! I'm so glad to hear that you are up and well. You heard Wolf is calling right?"

"I know Peppy. I wanted the call to be rerouted from the communications center to here. Can you please pull up the feed on the monitors?" Fox answered.

Peppy nodded. After pressing a couple of buttons on the dash, Slippy ran in breathing heavily. A couple of seconds passed and Wolf's face appeared on the screen with Leon and Panther behind their leader.

Falco's eyes narrowed as he saw Leon while the chameleon waved hello. Leon chuckled at the blue bird, "Hello Falco! Looks like we will have fun together again. This is going to be sweet!"

"Leon, be quiet." Wolf said calmly.

"Wolf O' Donnell, still living and breathing. Last I heard, you ran into some trouble over by Finchia. You survived that then" Fox said.

Wolf chuckled, "Nothing can stop me Fox McCloud. Aren't you glad to see me? One of these days, I will prove that I am better than you!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You've said the same thing for the past fifteen years. Now what do you want?" Falco interrupted.

Wolf trained his one eye on the blue bird and glared with such intensity that it caused Slippy to backup with fear. Only Falco stood steadfast, unwavering beneath the single eye of the wolf.

Fox folded his arms. "What do you want?"

"Oh, to only kill you and your crew. Just give me Falco and we'll be on our way." Leon hissed.

"Leon, shut your mouth before I give you a reason to shut it." Wolf snarled.

Leon rolled his eyes and looked at Panther. The panther was silent.

"Wolf, answer me right now." Fox demanded.

"My team and I are involved with a smuggling scheme and we need to make the drop soon. But my team and I ran into…ah… some problems and now we don't trust whoever is behind this. We think that there is something larger at play here other than making a drop." Wolf answered.

"So what? What does this have to do with us?" Fox asked.

"Star Wolf needs…. We need… I need…" Wolf started.

"Oh for Pepper's sakes," Leon cut in. "We need your help."

Wolf roared with anger and spun. His enclosed fist made contact with Leon's jaw and the chameleon landed on the ground with a crash. Breathing heavily, the wolf turned back to the Star Fox team and replied "Yes. I need your help. We think that this is a trap because we are to make the drop in Pepper's Square at 3 o' clock. And we all know that Pepper's Square will be-"

"Busy with different creatures roaming around going to the markets or going home from work." Fox interrupted. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "That would be the prime spot for a trap. Out in the daylight, with hundreds of animals roaming around they could take your guys out one by one and make it look like an accident."

"Precisely." Wolf said, "That's why we need your help. We need more eyes on this."

"What is it in for us?" Fox asked, "I mean, you did say a couple seconds ago that you wanted to kill me."

Wolf snarled "The payment is me sparing your life you ungrateful little wretch!"

Fox rolled his eyes. "Like Falco said, you've tried to kill me for the past fifteen years. I'm still standing. I need something better."

Wolf smiled. "Think of this as repayment. My crew and I helped you during the Aparoid War without any payment."

Fox sighed. As much as he didn't like it, Wolf did have a point. "If we do this, then are we even?"

"As even as we can be."

Fox was deep into thought as he pondered. Falco, Slippy and Peppy only waited for him to make a decision. Fox looked at Peppy and the hare only shrugged. That was enough for the vulpine and he nodded "What do we need to do?"

Panther gave out a gasp of shock and Wolf was momentarily taken aback. "You are going to help us?" The leader of Star Wolf asked.

Falco looked at his friend and leaned in and whispered. "Fox, can I talk to you for a minute?"

The vulpine nodded and turned to Wolf. "Give me a minute."

Falco and Fox both walked out of earshot from the monitor with Slippy and Peppy in tow. Fox folded his arms as he waited for his friend to speak. Falco opened his beak and closed it, only to open it again. Finally the blue bird spoke "Fox, I respect you, and know that I will always follow you. But… this…. "

Slippy interrupted "I think what Falco is trying to say is that this is madness! We can't trust what Wolf says. What if it's a trap to lure us in?"

Fox shook his head. "Not his style. He's more of a frontal confrontation. Look at Fortuna, the Sargasso Space Station. I could continue but each battle was a confrontation. Setting traps aren't his style."

Falco was shaking his head. "Fox, I have to say that I have a bad feeling about this." The blue bird turned to the silent hare. "Peppy, you've been quiet. What do you think?"

Peppy stroked his mustache as he looked back at the monitor. Wolf was drinking something, scotch presumably since it was his favorite alcohol. Leon was sitting on the chair behind the lupine and was checking his fingers. Panther was checking his face in the mirror as he gently touched what Peppy noticed were bruises. "Honestly Falco… I don't know. Yes, Wolf hates Fox and will stop at nothing to destroy him. But at other times, he did help us. The question is, can we trust him?"

Fox slowly nodded. "I think we can Peppy. He wouldn't be calling us if it wasn't for something important." He noticed Falco rolling his eyes and shaking his head even harder at the statement, but the vulpine continued. "You have to admit it Falco. This is different. He has never called us. Not once. So I am going to trust my gut and say that something bigger is at play, like what he said."

Falco spread his wings apart and tried to protest "But Fox, helping your _sworn_ enemy and rival is a bad idea. He's going to kill you the first chance he gets. Where will the Star Fox team be when that happens?

Fox placed his paw on Falco's shoulders. "In _your_ capable wings Falco. You will assume duties if or when I do leave this life. I trust you." Fox cracked a smile. "But I don't plan on going any time soon." His smile left as fast as it came, "But Falco. If something _did_ happen and Wolf was right, and we did nothing to stop it, would you live with the consequences? What if we did nothing to stop Andross? Millions and billions of lives would be lost and if something as large as that is happening again, I will put a stop to it… or die trying."

"Falco. I trust you. You've been with the team through thick and thin. Well, except when you left while I was stranded on Dinosaur Planet." Fox gave a small laugh letting Falco know that he never held any grudges for the blue bird's decision. "I know that underneath that tough and bravado posture holds a love for the Lylat System. Please listen to your heart and help us."

Silence ruled the moment and finally Falco could only roll his eyes. "Really McCloud?" the blue bird punched his friend in the shoulder. "You have to start spouting mushy stuff? You need to start a line of greeting cards."

Fox laughed. "So does that mean you're with me?"

"Yeah buddy. I'm with you. But I swear… if they try to take a shot at you, me or _anyone_ on the team, I will not hesitate to put an end to them!"

Fox nodded. "Good. Slippy?"

"I'm in!" the toad croaked

Peppy nodded with agreement. "I've always been with you. Not going to stop now."

The four friends walked back to the monitor where Wolf was playing with his gun by twirling it. Once the lupine noticed the Star Fox team, he quickly holstered it and leaned in closer. "So?"

Fox sighed and shrugged. "I'm probably going to regret this. But we are with you. What now?"

Wolf gave a wry grin. "Well, for starters, this is the cargo that we need to deliver." The wolf opened the briefcase and pulled out the earring for all to see. Fox gasped with shock as he asked. "Where did you get that Wolf?"

Wolf looked at the earring and back at the vulpine. "This old thing? Nowhere important."

"Answer me Wolf!"

Wolf stared at the vulpine with his single eye and uttered one word. "No."

Fox suppressed the rage and the frustration that was building up in him. "Wolf, that earring you are holding belongs to Krystal. So, please tell me where you got it."

Wolf gave out a bark of laughter. "Are you saying that I happen to be holding the earring of your lost loved one? This has become interesting indeed!"

Fox growled with anger "Then I guess you won't be needing my help after all." The vulpine moved to turn off the monitor, then Wolf, realizing what was happening stopped laughing and said "Wait! Wait. I do need your help."

"Then where did you get it?" Fox shouted.

"At some old space station. It was in a room under guard. We barely escaped with our lives. But know this, I didn't know what we were smuggling until we left."

"Would've been easier on everyone if you didn't escape" Falco interrupted.

"Shut your beak bird! If we didn't escape, you wouldn't have this!" Wolf shot back.

Falco opened his mouth to retort, but Fox held up his hand. The blue bird slowly shut his beak as his eyes burned with hatred for Wolf as Leon chuckled in the background.

 _Oh Krystal, what do I do?_ Fox thought silently to himself. Tiredness swept over him like a wave and the vulpine put his paws on the captain chair as he breathed in deeply.

 _Never lose hope…. I am always with you_ her musical voice from his dream echoed through his head. The vulpine could feel her hand touching his cheek as he reveled in the imagination of reuniting with her.

He clenched his paw and slammed it down on the chair causing everyone to jump, startled. Fox took another deep breath. "So you have Krystal's earring. We make the delivery and what? You collect the money?"

"That's the plan." The lupine answered.

"You told us that this could be a trap. That you could be ambushed in Pepper Square. But why?"

Wolf adjusted his position on the chair. "We saw something strange. There was an insignia on the briefcase and it was a rose over a fire. The family crest of this one." He jutted his thumb backwards to the watching Panther.

Panther shrugged. "Like I said Wolf, I'm the only surviving member of my family. So some other beast is stealing my crest since I've been here the entire time."

"A rose over a fire you say?" Fox quickly turned to Falco. "That's what King Tricky said."

Falco nodded. "That has to be the same thing."

"And if we can find whomever is behind this, then we can find Krystal!" Slippy croaked.

Fox set his jaw with determination then he turned back to the monitor, knowing that Wolf was listening to everything. The leader of Star Wolf was already shaking his head. "Nope! I just want to make the drop and collect the money."

"But Wolf!" Fox protested.

"I'm sorry McCloud. I've only asked you to help me by watching our backs. I don't need to get myself or my team in something bigger than this."

"We're already a part of this." Panther muttered.

Unfortunately, the lupine heard the remark and Panther yowled with pain as Wolf's elbow crashed into his nose. The black panther fell backwards with a crash and laid there unmoving. Leon gave out a short bark of laughter for he was glad he wasn't on the receiving end of Wolf's anger. Once he realized that Panther wasn't moving, the chameleon walked to his fallen friend and checked him over. The chameleon stood up and gave his verdict. "Broken nose and a possible concussion."

Wolf rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Fox. "Like I said, I want to make the drop and pick up the money. That's it."

"Wolf… Please…You've helped us in the past. Why stop now?"

Wolf smiled, loving the scene that was unfolding before him. The great Fox McCloud was begging! Sure, it was hard for Wolf to push down his pride to help Fox, but never once he thought he would see the leader of the Star Fox team beg! But as his eye surveyed the figure before him, the lupine noticed things about the leader of the Star Fox team that he hadn't noticed before.

Dark lines circled around Fox's eyes and his fur was matted. The vulpine kept shaking his head, in attempt to wake himself up. Fox's clothes were dirty and disheveled and he could see the wild, yet determined fire in his eyes. The eyes were what interested the aging wolf because it told him that Fox was on the breaking point and would do anything to be reunited with his loved one.

It convinced him. Almost.

"Sorry Foxy boy! You're on your own for this one!" the lupine said.

Fox took a deep breath, but before he could say anything, Leon leaned inside and whispered in Wolf's ear. Wolf spun around and started to close his fist. Leon stood unmoving and braced himself for the punch. But the punch never came as Wolf sighed, dropped his paw and shook his head.

"Fine! We'll help. But only on the tailing mission. NOTHING after!" Wolf folded his arms and glared at Leon.

Fox gave out a big sigh and started to thank the lupine. Wolf held up his paw and said "Never thank me McCloud. I still want to kill you."

Fox cracked a smile. "So same old?"

Wolf only nodded slightly and then left the screen. Leon stepped forward with Panther still crumbled in the background. "Well, Fox." Leon hissed. "I guess we are working together."

"Thank you Leon. What did you say to him?"

"I only reminded him what it was like to be in love."

"Wolf O' Donnell in love?" Falco chortled. "I can hardly believe this!"

Leon gave a small smile. "Oh yes!" the chameleon hissed. "He met a female of his own specie and…"

The screen went black.

 _Corneria_

Fox McCloud jumped out of his Arwing in the Cornerian hangar. He pressed a remote on his belt and the cockpit door hissed shut. Falco and Slippy walked up next to the vulpine.

"Are we really going to be doing this?" Slippy asked.

Fox nodded. "I'm afraid so Slippy. I'm afraid so."

"Let's get this over with. The sooner we are done, the quicker I can be away from Leon." Falco muttered.

The three members of the Star Fox team walked down the pathway into the main city of Corneria and eventually Pepper Square. Fox relayed the steps of the plan that Wolf outlined with him and his crew. The Star Fox team simply is the ground surveillance while Leon and Panther takes to the buildings. Wolf, himself will personally exchange the cargo for the money. When the exchange happens, Leon will use a special laser to mark the carrier that can only be seen through special lenses that was equipped and worn by everybody. When the mark happens, Wolf with the Star Fox team will tail the carrier back to their destination while learning about what they are. Peppy remained with ROB on the Great Fox, for backup and tactical support.

 _This is going to be the most risky thing I have ever done_. Fox thought. _To put our trust in Wolf like this, how do I know that this trust won't be misplaced?_

Falco spoke up "Don't worry. This'll all work out."

The vulpine gave a small smile. The three friends made their way to Pepper Square and got ready. Falco sat down on a table and ordered something to drink. Slippy milled amongst the crowd, chatting up random, friendly strangers while Fox sat down on a bench and observed the scene.

"Everyone's in place." Wolf's voice crackled through the vulpine's earpiece. "I hope you don't let me down."

Fox sighed. "Wolf, I put my trust in you that you won't go and shoot me in the back, so you should trust me."

Wolf was silent for a couple of minutes. "You're right. You're right."

Half an hour passed and Wolf was getting impatient. "It's been more than thirty minutes and I'm tired of waiting. This has been a bust. Everyone let's go."

As the vulpine stood up to walk towards Falco, who was still sitting on the table drinking a cup of coffee. Leon's voice hissed through the earpiece. "Wait a second. Wolf. I see a creature coming with a briefcase. I think it's him."

Fox turned and saw the creature walk up to the leader of the Star Wolf team. After a few exchanged words, the two creatures switched briefcases and the creature tipped his head.

As the animal left, Fox could hear Wolf breathing into the earpiece. "Leon, did you mark him?"

"Yup. Now the chase begins." The chameleon answered.

Falco rose up from his table and joined Fox while Slippy left the comforts of the crowd. The three friends met up with Wolf and looked at him. The wolf opened his briefcase and sure enough the money was there. Wolf placed the briefcase inside a trashcan next to the bench. "Leon, Panther, the money is in here. Grab it when you get down from the buildings. We are going to follow them."

There was no reply.

"Leon, Panther do you hear me?" Wolf tried again.

No answer.

Wolf growled with frustration. "What have those two idiots done now?"

"I'm sure they are fine. They probably turned their earpiece off?" Slippy asked.

Wolf shrugged. "Whatever trouble they got in, it's their fault for not being careful."

The leader of Star Wolf started following the creature. Fox, Falco and Slippy stayed close behind him. The four animals walked through the entire city as the creature took many different winding turns. He would walk through an alleyway then pop up again in a crowd full of people, only to disappear into the alley again. But Wolf, Fox and the rest of the Star Fox team stuck to him like glue, following every movement he made.

Finally the creature went into an alleyway and rounded a corner. Wolf followed but as soon as he turned the corner, he jumped back. "He's stopped and I've seen that there is an airship in front of him." Wolf whispered.

Fox nodded and looked around the corner. His eyes widened with shock as he realized how the airship seemed familiar. "Falco, Slippy, it's the same plane that attacked us while we lost Krystal. It's confirmed now. They have something to do with her death."

Falco and Slippy nodded, hiding their anger. In front of them the airship door opened, creating a small ramp and a giant lizard walked out. The creature bowed and hissed "My Commander. The exchange has been successful. However we found these two skulking on top of the buildings."

The creature made a gesture and Leon and Panther was brought to the Commander. Leon was unconscious and Panther was struggling weakly. Commander Ragas smiled, "They would make perfect addition to the slaves." The commander looked up and around. "Come out, come out wherever you are. I know that you must have followed him because these pathetic creatures got themselves captured."

The commander turned his gaze to the creature holding the briefcase. "And I specifically said NOT to get followed!" Quick as lightening, the lizard commander drew his sword and killed the creature on the spot.

Fox sighed and stood up. "Looks like our game is up." He said.

Wolf nodded with agreement. "Let's see what they want."

Fox, followed by Falco, Slippy and Wolf rounded the corner and stood before Commander Ragas and his lizard guards. Leon was still laying on the ground and Panther stayed kneeling, a sword across his throat.

Suddenly a booming voice echoed out of the airship. "Fox McCloud of the Star Fox team and Wolf O'Donnell of Star Wolf! I'm so glad you guys could make it."

Everyone stared at the airship and finally a creature outfitted in a long red robe with a hood walked down the ramp. When the creature arrived on the ground, he spread his paws, showing black fur. "But I am deeply saddened to have learned that Krystal has indeed died." The creature chuckled evilly. Then he turned to the guards holding Leon and Panther and said "Let them go. I will spare their miserable lives, to show that I forgive them for following us."

"But my lord-" Commander Ragas sputtered.

"I have made my decision Commander! We have what we got, and we outnumber them. If they want to survive, they will NOT follow us."

Panther picked up the chameleon and carried him to Wolf. He then turned back around and spoke to the creature. "Before you go. Why my family crest. Do you have a grudge against me and my family? I am the only surviving kin, so speak to me!"

The creature stopped at the base of the ramp to the airship. Slowly he turned around and looked at Panther. Finally he took off his hood showing his face. "I would think that you would have recognized me. But it has been many years, you would have forgotten my voice." The Emperor said.

Panther's switched from masked fury to shock. "Father?" he said with a small voice.

"Hello son." The Emperor replied with a calm voice.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

 _Unknown Source_

The sun beat mercilessly down on Astra's snow-furred back and the vixen slowly regained consciousness. Unaware, her tongue darted across her lips feeling the dryness and she felt her stomach growl, begging for food and water. Astra blinked several times, and rubbed her tired paws across her eyes and noticed that she was surrounded by a wall in a cylindrical shape made of dirt and rock. After realizing that she was sprawled uncomfortably on her stomach, she started to roll on her back but in doing so, she yipped with pain. The wounds and bruises on her body inflicted by Commander Ragas had not healed yet. Once the vixen finally regained awareness, she realized that she was lying underneath a shelter made of a small, raggedy blanket, only propped up by two sticks. Looking up, Astra slowly sat up and tentatively crawled out of the tiny shelter which only provided minimal cover.

The light blinded her. Astra immediately raised a paw to block her eyes and to grant her visibility. Immediately her training kicked in and she started to create mental notes about her position. The wind above blew, but a small breeze could be felt, but Astra was still grateful. She noticed that there was a grate on top of the pit, but no way to escape and the walls were smooth. Astra slowly stood up, ignoring the pain that erupted from her entire body and felt the wall with one of her paws. She was met with disappointment as her eyes didn't trick her as the walls did confirm her deduction. The vixen looked to her left and saw a piece of stale bread slowly rotting underneath the sun and she slowly reached for it. The pain of her movement was unbearable and the vixen nearly blacked out. Finally after a couple of minutes of trying, Astra finally reached the bread, and ate it without thinking twice. The bread sated her stomach, but it wasn't enough to appease the monster.

The vixen shook her head with despair. "I have failed. Delios won't be very happy about this," she said out loud.

"Failed what?" a voice said.

Astra turned towards the voice quickly with shock and across the pit, saw a thin cat, sitting underneath a tiny tent, similar to hers. The vixen shook her head, trying to see clearly through her weary state. The cat arose and went to the tired Astra and placed his paw on her shoulder.

"Astra?" the cat said again. "What do you mean you failed?"

"How… how do you know my name?" the vixen could only respond.

The cat sighed and helped her across the pit and into his own tent. Although the tent was small, it still provided small comfort against the heat of the sun. The cat sat down, leaning his back against the wall and motioned for Astra to do the same. Astra slowly nodded and sat down, groaning and clutching on her side. She moved her paw and looked at it and gasped. One of her newly formed scars had ripped open and it was bleeding again. The cat saw what happened and he already had a filthy, dried blood rag ready. Immediately Astra felt pain as the rag was pressed forcibly against her side.

"Sorry about that Astra. This is the only thing I have." Zargos said.

Astra shook her head. "You didn't answer me. How do you know my name?"

"First," Zargos started as he took the vixen's paw and helped her press the rag on her side, "what do you remember?"

Astra placed her head back and closed her eyes. Memories came back to her in flashes. Being caught in the Commander's room searching for the key. The constant torture by Ragas and finally the pain of being thrown into the pit. She then remembered looking at the worried face of a cat and was hit with a realization that it was indeed the same creature.

"You're name… it's Zargos?" the vixen asked.

Zargos nodded. "That was our first conversation. The lizards threw you into the pit and left you here to die. I was afraid that you did die, but it pleases me to see that you are not. I tried to fix you up as best as I could."

Astra nodded. "Thank you for your help. Thank you for keeping me alive."

Zargos only smiled and tilted his head with acknowledgement. "Thanking me won't improve our predicament but I appreciate the gratitude." He pointed at her, "So, who are you and why are you here?"

Astra sighed. "It's a long story." She waved her paw dismissively.

Zargos smiled once again, showing his sharp fangs. The cat gestured towards the pit. "Do tell, it seems like we have all the time in the world."

Astra nodded. "Alright, it only seems fair since you saved my life and all."

The two animals settled even more and Zargos folded his paws together as he listened intently to the vixen sitting across him.

"This may sound crazy, but I have no memory of what happened before this," Astra started, "I just remember waking up in the forest, with a bunch of creatures tending to me and helping me. But how I got there, I can't tell you. I was questioned about who I was, why I was here and so on, but I couldn't tell them anything. I guess that was when they decided that I was not a threat and that they would accept me into their little group."

"So no memory at all?" Zargos asked "Not one?"

"Not one. As I became accepted in this group, I came to a realization that this group were a group made up of rebels. Apparently they inhabited this planet far before its fated destruction. 'Before you came' the leader said, 'this planet was peaceful. Creatures lived together in harmony, until that one fateful moment where an evil panther came out of the sky and invaded us with his army.'"

"That must have been the Emperor and Commander Ragas!" Zargos said with surprise. "But why didn't they fight back?"

"How could they?" Astra asked "This planet was peaceful. They didn't believe in war, therefore their weapons and standing army was very limited. They still DID fight back, but the Emperor overcame them with the sheer force of numbers and guns. Those who resisted, he killed but those who didn't he enslaved. Some slaves were able to escape the Emperor and these are the same slaves that helped create the resistance."

Astra looked around and noticed a small bowl of water next to the cat. She motioned towards it, "Do you mind?"

Zargos shook his head as he picked it up with his two paws. "Open your mouth. You still need to keep pressure on your cut." Astra nodded and opened her mouth and Zargos poured the remaining contents of the bowl into her. Astra didn't swallow at first, instead she swished the water around her mouth, enjoying the liquid giving the mouth its moisture back. The water wasn't cool, but Astra was still grateful that the cat would give up his last item.

"Thank you." Astra wiped her mouth.

Zargos merely nodded and he rotated his paw, signaling Astra to continue.

"They gave me two options. One, I could stay and help them fight and get rid of the tyranny of the Emperor. Or two, they could send me back home, wherever home is. Obviously I chose the former and I trained for weeks with their best fighters. But it occurred to me that I must have some previous training because the guns were familiar, the swords felt right in my hands and the knives were the right balance. I immediately rose up through the ranks and I was invited to work with Kix, that's the leader, and Delios, Kix's right hand man."

"So there are two main people in charge of the resistance?" Zargos asked

"Yes. Kix and Delios. Delios actually saved Kix's life. Kix loves telling that story."

"So what happened?"

Astra smiled. "That is a story for another time," the vixen paused and continued, "We had multiple of plans for attack. But we knew that each plan was doomed to fail. We simply didn't have a leader. Yes, Kix is the leader of the resistance, but he knew how to raise morale. Although Kix organized the group, he had no experience in military tactics. Delios is the only person out of the whole resistance who had minimal experience with the military. But then we heard that a slave here could be of use to our resistance. That was my mission, and it seems that I have failed."

"Who was the creature? I could perhaps help you point out him?" Zargos asked.

Astra smiled. "It's you Zargos. I was sent to break you out and bring you back to the resistance. But now it seems that we both are stuck in this pit."

Determination was evident on Zargos' face. "I will help you Astra. I will find a way to set both of us free and go to the resistance. I want this planet to be cleaned of the Emperor's scourge for each and every creature. We all deserve to have peace."

Astra sighed painfully. "It seems that we can't do anything at this moment." The vixen yawned and slowly stretched.

"Rest and go to sleep. When you came in a couple of days ago, I thought you were dead but you survived. You are a fighter Astra!"

Astra's slowly shutting eyes snapped back open. "What did you say?"

"I said that you are a fighter."

"No, no before that."

"You came into this pit a couple of days ago."

"How long ago would you say?"

Zargos took a minute and thought. "I would say around three days ago. Yes, it was three days ago. Your injuries took its toll, and you were passed out. Like I said, I was afraid you'd die. "

"So three days have passed since I was in the pit?"

"That seems about right, yes."

Zargos was surprised at the sudden change in Astra as the vixen whooped with delight. "This is wonderful!" she exclaimed.

The cat stared at the snow-furred vixen with confusion. "How?"

"I was given one night to complete this mission and to get you back to the resistance. However, I was given a three day window if something went wrong. According to you, today is the fourth day, so the resistance will send a small group, most likely led by Delios, to search for me. They will infiltrate the castle and not stop until they find me or you, dead or alive."

Understanding and realization dawned on the cat. He licked his lips excitedly. "There is one thing that will make this even better."

"What?"

"The Emperor is gone."

"WHAT?"

"Yep! He, Commander Ragas and half of the guards left on the airship headed for this planet called…. What was the name? Corneria, I think."

 _Corneria_

The name lingered in the back of Astra's mind tugging at the deep recesses of her memories. _Why is that name so familiar_ she thought to herself. Immediately, the vixen pushed the thought out of her mind.

"That's perfect. If Delios' group happen to come tonight, then we all can leave!"

Zargos smiled at her excitement. "But there's one thing."

"What's that?"

"We have to free the slaves."

Astra's smile quickly disappeared. "I can't promise you that Zargos. Their objective will be to extract me and you at all costs."

"But I can't leave them alone!" Zargos argued "They practically saved my life. Even Benjie risked his life and limb to keep me alive."

"I understand Zargos, but I promise you that when we leave and are ready to destroy the Emperor once and for all, we will free them!"

Zargos sighed. "I guess that's good enough." The cat leaned back against the wall. "So when will this little group of yours come?"

"Tonight." Astra answered. The vixen looked outside of the tent and saw the sun, still illuminating the ground. "Please come Delios." she whispered.

The sun passed through the sky as the slaves toiled at their labors, under the watchful eyes of the lizards. With every stumble by a slave, the guard answered with an extra lash, a kick or a hit with the rifle butt. Soon the sun disappeared over the horizon and the moon rose. The tired slaves crawled back into their pen to reunite with their families and friends. Each creature fell asleep, tired from the work and dreamed of a better tomorrow.

Outside the fortress and into the woods, two sets of eyes roamed the stony walls and observed the sheer cliff drop. A cool breeze battled the heat from the day as the silent observers roamed through the edge of the forest, constantly searching, yet staying out of eyesight. Guards stood attentively on the ramparts, their guns and swords at the ready for any invaders. Since Astra was able to infiltrate the fortress, the Emperor punished the guards on duty by flogging them personally. After the cruel punishment, the black panther turned to the watching guards and suggested that they stay attention all night.

The guards obeyed out of fear. They stood on the ramparts fighting sleep, their memories scarred with the horrendous torture the Emperor lashed out on his victims. As they stood watch over the fortress and the forest that laid in front of it, the lizards failed to see the two figures slinking amongst the shadows of the forest.

The first figure stopped moving as he searched the fortress with despair. He was a well-built raccoon, obviously fine-tuned from months of training. The raccoon wore a simple brown coat over his forest green shirt and cargo pants. On his face, instead of the normal grey color, the raccoon put soot and darkened his fur to allow him to blend into the night. "It's no use! They are all awake."

The second figure shook his head. He was a lean lynx, not young as he used to be as his fur showed grey with age. He wore the same outfit as the raccoon, instead he carried a backpack with him. The lynx placed the pack down on the ground and opened it. After rummaging through it, he pulled out several items: a rope with a grappling hook, a set of knives and lock picks. The lynx stood up and said "Have faith Delios. There is always a way."

The raccoon, Delios, spoke "But Kix, where? The only way to get into that fortress is to climb the walls and the guards are sure to spot us!"

Kix was silent for a few minutes. His friend was right, but then a movement to the left of him caught his eye. It was a covered wagon, with a team of four slaves pulling it and some lizard guards in the lead watching and guiding them. He pointed them out to Delios. "There's your way in."

Delios scoffed. "Do you want me to get killed?"

Kix shrugged. "Do you see another way? If you try to climb the wall, the guard is sure to spot you! So what you need to do is hide in that bush over there," the lynx pointed out "and once they pass by, jump into the wagon. Use the items in the wagon as cover. The lizards won't surely see you."

Delios grunted. "Huh, seems simple enough. So I run across the plain, and pray to the gods that I don't get caught, hide in the bush, and once the wagon comes by jump in and cover myself with whatever items in it?"

Kix smiled "See! I knew you would agree."

Delios shook his head. "You're nuts. For the sake of not having another plan and the urgency of this situation, I'll do it. Give me an hour."

Kix nodded. "Good luck Delios. Bring her back to us."

Delios smiled and offered his paw to the lynx. The lynx accepted it and they hugged, with their foreheads touching each other as was the tradition. When Delios let go of his friend, he grabbed the items that was pulled out of the backpack and tied them on his back. "I'll be here and waiting." Kix promised. "And Delios? Those lockpicks you are holding? We don't have a lot of them. So if you could not break any of them, that would be, you know, great."

The raccoon nodded and turned. Delios sped across the plain, each pawstep not making any noise as he ran towards the bush. As Kix watched him run, he felt nothing but pride for the raccoon. Delios and Kix had been together through thick and thin. They experienced joy, tears, suffering and frustrations together.

 _The ground rumbled as explosions rippled across the earth. Kix outside of his home and across the plain in astonishment. Ships of various sizes were flying around and shooting down the animals on the ground. He looked across and saw other creatures screaming with panic as they searched for their friends and loved ones. Kix turned and raced back inside his home and ran into his wife and daughter. "Kix! What's happening?" his wife asked_

 _"_ _I don't know! But we need to leave!"_

 _Kix guided his wife and daughter through the living room of their house. Explosions sounded, mingling with the daughter's scream and the wife's crying. The three lynxes slowly made their way into the master bedroom in which Kix installed a trapdoor on the floor in the closet. His wife had always insisted that they would have no need for it, but Kix was an extremely cautious man. He was glad that he had inserted the trapdoor there. The lynx opened the door, but once he did, he heard his front door break open and creatures storming in._

 _"_ _Take her and get out of here!" Kix yelled to his wife._

 _"_ _Not without you!" she replied._

 _"_ _Go! I'll be right behind you."_

 _The lynx helped lower his wife and daughter into the pit underneath the trapdoor. "Remember, this corridor will take you to the lake. Go there, and wait for me. Trust no one!"_

 _The soldiers were getting closer and Kyx's wife had a chance to cry "I love you!" before the lynx closed the trapdoor. Kix hurriedly stood up and closed his closet and turned to face the door of the master bedroom. The door broke open and five lizards, all armed to the teeth rushed in. The lynx raised his paws to defend himself, but it was no use. The guard swung his gun and everything went black._

 _Pain flashed through the lynx's skull as Kix slowly woke up. When he finally came to, he found himself kneeling down on the ground, being held by two lizards. As he looked to his left and to his right, other creatures were in the same position as he. A tall lizard with a metallic barb attached to his tail walked down the pathway in front of the animals. He was talking to a tall black panther. The sight of the panther was enough to send chills down his spine._

 _"_ _My lord, they were easy enough to take over. Those who resisted has been dealt with."_

 _"_ _Good Ragas, that is good." The Emperor purred. "Has there been any runaways?"_

 _"_ _Yes my lord. There has been some, but do not worry for they have been swiftly dealt with. Two lasted longer than the other. We caught them slinking around by the lake."_

 _Kix's head snapped up at the mention of the lake._

 _"_ _What happened to them?" The Emperor asked._

 _"_ _We put them down." Ragas snickered. "They didn't even put up a fight. How could they anyways? A mom with a little girl. They didn't pose any threat."_

 _Kix's heart broke. A mixture of emotions swept over him: rage and sorrow the strongest of them all. He wept silently at the fate of his loved ones as he searched for comfort within his memories. The Emperor and Commander Ragas continued their walk down the line and when Ragas got close to Kix, rage overtook the lynx. He reached out with all of his might and grabbed Ragas' tail, yanking him backwards. The lizard commander fell onto the ground with a crash and a surprised hiss. Before the commander knew it, the lynx jumped on him and started punching him with all of his strength. The fight was finished as quickly as it even began as the two lizard guards immediately pulled the raging lynx off their commander._

 _Ragas stood up, wiping blood off his lips and ordered the guards to force Kix onto his knees. Kix felt his body being pushed down onto the ground and Ragas circled behind him with the Emperor watching. He raised his tail and brought it down on the lynx's back. Once, twice and thrice, the metallic barb made contact, leaving streaks of cuts on the back. Kix grunted with pain but refused to cry out. This only infuriated Ragas even more and he attacked Kix with renewed energy. Finally the Emperor spoke up "Ragas. That's enough."_

 _The Commander stopped his unrelenting attacks and leaned in close to Kix's ear and whispered. "You got off easy lynx."_

 _Kix only spat in his face and the Commander raised his tail for another lash only to find it stop in midair as the Emperor held it._

 _"_ _That's enough Commander. Let the guards take care of him. You and I have more to discuss."_

 _The Commander hissed with annoyance but obeyed the will of his lord. The Emperor looked at Kix and several other creatures around the lynx. "Take these slaves and put them with the others."_

 _The lizard guards nodded silently pulled Kix and three other creatures, and led them away from the tiny town and deeper into the forest. As they walked, Kix realized what was going to happen and solemnly accepted his fate. The guards ordered them to get down on their knees and the guards steadily held their guns, aiming at the back of Kix's head._

 _Kix closed his eyes, waiting for the sweet release of death. One minute passed, and nothing happened. A second minute passed and still Kix waited. Finally after five minutes passed, Kix gathered up the courage to open his eyes. The lynx looked behind him gasped with surprise. All the lizards were dead, on its back, their eyes open with shock. Kix looked closely at the bodies and noticed small darts protruding out of their necks._

 _"_ _Poison." The lynx muttered. "Very effective."_

 _"_ _It's alright mate. You are okay now." a voice said._

 _Kix jumped startled. Out of the shadows of the forest, a raccoon emerged. He rushed to the lynx and the other creatures, quickly cutting their bonds with his knife and helped Kix up._

 _"_ _I saw what you did back there. You got guts!" the raccoon exclaimed._

 _"_ _Um… Thanks?" Kix answered with confusion._

 _"_ _We need to get out of here. Away from all of this madness, and I promise you, we will free our friends. We will retake over this planet."_

 _"_ _The planet has been taken over?"_

 _"_ _Aye mate. Every square inch of it." the raccoon nodded sadly._

 _Kix shook with rage. "They won't get away with it. I'm with you. What's your name friend?"_

 _The raccoon smiled "The name's Delios mate. Pleasure to meet you…"_

 _"_ _Kix. My name is Kix."_

Kix tentatively touched the scars on his back. He reached into the pockets of his cargo pants and pulled out a picture. The smiling faces of his wife and daughter stared back at him. The lynx shuddered with sadness but seeing his wife and daughter only renewed his vow: to see the Emperor dead along with all of his accomplices. Kix put the picture back into his pocket and he stood, watching his friend race across the darkness. _Come back to us alive_

The raccoon sped stealthily towards the bush. When he finally got there, he laid down and attempted not to move. His instincts told him that if he did move, the bush would rustle and would attract the attention of the lizard guards. The covered wagon slowly moved closer and closer as Delios braced himself to move.

Once the wagon arrived where Delios was laying, the raccoon held his breath. The lizard was walking several feet from where he lay. He waited patiently in the cover of the bush, waiting for his moment to strike. The wagon continued to move on its way towards the fortress and once Delios judged the perfect timing to move, he stood up. As soon as he did, he immediately fell back down into the dirt as he noticed another lizard guard was sweeping behind the wagon, making sure that no one was following them.

Delios cursed to himself. This put a hole in his plan. Immediately, his mind raced coming up with a new one and he grabbed a small pebble next to him. Once the lizard reached the bush, Delios quickly tossed the pebble over the lizard and hit the tree. The lizard swiveled towards the noise and slowly walked across the road to investigate. _Wait for it… wait for it…_ The lizard reached the tree, _and now!_ Delios sprang out of the bush and quickly put the guard in a chokehold. The lizard flailed wildly but within a few seconds underneath the powerful arms of the raccoon, the guard went limp. Delios dropped him onto the ground and looked back at the wagon, breathing steadily and calming himself from the sudden rush of adrenaline.

The raccoon crouched and immediately started jogging silently across the road towards the wagon. Two lizard guards were still in front of the slaves, and they hadn't noticed that their comrade was gone. Delios reached the back of the covered wagon, hopped with one foot on the small step and balanced himself by placing his paw on the support beam. Delios pulled the cloth open, and his hope of executing a successful plan was crushed. Inside the wagon were weapons of various kinds. Swords, knives, axes, maces and even guns littered the wooden floor.

Delios' mind raced trying to figure out a better plan. But the fortress was getting closer and closer as the wagon was left the confines of the forest. Delios gave in and returned to the original plan.

"This is going to be an uncomfortable ride." Delios whispered to himself as he climbed in. Careful to avoid the dangerous weapons, which were all of them, Delios took off his jacket and placed it over the rifles and slowly sat down on the thin barrier. Thankfully the rifle didn't go off as Delios waited for the wagon to reach the fortress.

 _To whatever gods there are_ Delios prayed _Please don't have a gate check for the wagon._

After several minutes, of bumpiness and feeling very uncomfortable, Delios felt the wagon slow to a stop at the front of the gate. He pulled out his knife, and tensed himself to attack.

"Halt! What do you have in the wagon?" the lizard from the battlement called out.

"Just weapons!" was the reply.

"This late? The orders weren't supposed to come this week!"

"Do you want to defy the orders of the Emperor? He wanted the weapons now!"

The metallic gate swung open as the lizard loosened the chains and the wagon was on the move again. Delios smiled as he looked past the cloth covering and noticed that he was indeed in the fortress! Finally, it seemed that lady luck was on his side! The wagon rolled as the slaves continued to pull on the transportation and they finally came to a stop.

"Git those slaves to the pen!" a lizard snarled.

"Why me? I just want to be done!" the second lizard complained.

"Do you really want to unpack the wagon? Huh? Yeah, I didn't think so."

Delios froze up at the statement but quickly formulated a plan. He immediately pulled out a rifle from underneath his jacket that he was sitting on and readied his knife. He heard chains clinking as the second lizard pulled the slave away. The raccoon looked to his right and saw the shadow of the first lizard move around the wagon. The lizard got closer and closer to the wagon and Delios readied himself. His heart started pumping faster and he was aware of the sudden rush of adrenaline. Sweat from stress started rolling down his head and Delios saw the claw of the lizard start to open the entrance. Immediately, Delios attacked brandishing his rifle and knife.

The lizard scrambled back with surprise as the rifle was shoved in his face and he felt a knife tickling his stomach. He slowly looked at the golden eyes of the raccoon. "You're going to answer all of my questions right?" Delios growled.

The lizard only nodded.

"Did you have any new prisoners come in recently?"

The lizard licked his lips and smiled, showing his scraggly teeth. "You don't scare me."

"Wrong answer."

The lizard gasped with pain as Delios moved the knife from his stomach and slammed the weapon into the lizard paw. "Finally!" the raccoon breathed with relief. "I can finally hold this rifle better." He moved the rifle from his right paw and started holding it with both of his paws. The lizard was groaning as blood was seeping out of his foot.

"So? Are we going to play mate?

After cursing the dead guard that Astra had killed under his breath, he swallowed and slowly shook his head.

"I don't think you understand the game mate! That's the wrong answer. I don't like wrong answers. So if I were you, I would answer correctly. Now, I know you have a new prisoner right?"

The guard nodded silently and Delios pressed "Was she a vixen with fur white as snow?" Again the guard nodded. Delios leaned in dangerously close and whispered into the guard's ear "Tell me where she is being held."

This time the guard shrugged. "I don't know sir. The commander doesn't tell us anything."

At this statement, Delios realized something missing from the fortress. "Is the commander or the Emperor here? I noticed that this fortress isn't crawling with lizard scum!"

"No sir, the Commander and the Emperor left a couple of days ago to go to Corneria! That's all I know!"

"Why? Why are they in Corneria? Answer me!."

"I don't know sir. Please let me live!" the guard pleaded.

"You say that you don't know where the vixen is being held? Well, that's a shame. I have no use for you." Delios adjusted his hold on the rifle, pulled the knife out of the lizard's foot and raised it up into the air.

The lizard threw up his claws to protect himself. "Wait! Wait!" The raccoon stopped and slowly put his arm down. The guard sighed with anguish. "The pit, she's in the pit."

The raccoon smiled with victory. "Thank you kind sir. Unfortunately, the Emperor won't be appreciative of you helping me. So if I were you, I would get out of here when I wake up."

"Wake up? What do you-"

The guard stopped talking as Delios flipped his knife and brought the hilt crashing down onto his skull. The lizard fell in a heap.

As soon as the lizard hit the ground, Delios was already assessing his surroundings. He cursed at himself for the giant risk he took because he was out in the open. But he calmed himself once he assured himself that no one noticed the exchange between himself and the guard. Torches surround the battlements above him, and the moonlight from the sky was enough to show where the raccoon was if a lizard happened to walk across the battlement.

Delios stood up and gathered the rope that he had left in the wagon and put his knife away. He looked at the rifle and went back to the wagon. After several seconds of searching, Delios found a pistol. He exchanged the two weapons and held the pistol in his left paw. _Better mobility_ the raccoon thought. He scurried to his left, away from the unconscious guard and into a shadowed place. After catching his breath, Delios searched the grounds all around him. _The lizard said that she is in the pit. Where is the pit?_ After a couple of minutes, Delios was about to give up and start searching until something caught his eye. Two lizard guards walked across the ground, both carrying torches. As the raccoon watched, he noticed that the light illuminated from the torches was enough to show a metal grate on the ground. _The pit!_

Noting that the two guards were well away from the pit, Delios sped quietly across the moon lit ground to the metal grate. He peered inside and his heart sunk as he was greeted with darkness. Suddenly something stirred on the ground and Delios waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. His patience paid off as he saw two figures laying on the ground. He shook the grate, attracting the attention to one creature lying on the ground. "Who's there?" the cat called.

"Shhh mate! I'm a friend. I'm here to bust you out. Is Astra there?"

The cat nodded gravely. "Yes, but she still suffered from deep injuries. I've done all that I can."

Astra groaned awake. "Who are you talking to Zargos?" The vixen turned and looked upwards and saw the smiling raccoon's face. "Delios? Is that you?"

Delios couldn't stop smiling because of the relief he was feeling. "Aye mate. Tis me. Hang in there. I'm getting you out!"

The raccoon moved to the lock on the grate, pulled out the lock picks and got to work. _Snap_ the first one broke. Delios shook his head and continued. After several tries, the grate finally opened. The squeaking noise was barely audible as Delios nervously looked around. Unfortunately a guard heard the sound.

"What was that?" the guard hissed.

"What? I didn't hear anything." The second one answered.

"Stay here. I'll check it out."

Thinking quickly, Delios scurried away. Astra and Zargos looked upwards with concern as they saw the animal leave. "Where's he going?" Zargos asked.

The vixen had a worried look on her face. "I don't know. Something must be wrong." The two friends continued looking up at the open grate into the night sky. The light became brighter as the torch from the guard indicated that he was getting closer and closer. Suddenly the cat and the vixen heard an indignant "Hey-"before being cutoff.

Suddenly Astra jumped with fright, forgetting her injuries as the unconscious body of the lizard fell onto the ground in the pit. Zargos beamed as he looked up at the raccoon, now holding the torch. Delios latched the hook into the ground and threw the rope down. "Hurry and climb up! You'll be fine as I am holding the rope."

"But, we're too weak." Zargos argued. "We hardly have any strength to hoist ourselves."

Delios cursed to himself. The cat was right, the raccoon noticed, as both figures were thin and weary due to lack of food and the unmerciful sun.

Astra sighed. "Zargos, I'll get on your back and you'll climb us up."

Zargos laughed. "How?"

"Trust me Zargos."

The sincerity of her voice was what convinced the cat. Astra painfully climbed on his back and Zargos nearly collapsed. The cat slowly straightened himself and adjusted to the weight of the injured vixen. Zargos grabbed the rope and placed one paw on the wall started to climb. The first step that Zargos took nearly done him in. But out of nowhere, strength surged through the cat and before he knew it, Zargos was climbing. Within a few seconds, the two friends were already halfway out. Once they reached the top, Delios helped both creatures out of the pit and immediately hugged Astra.

"Hi Delios, It's good to see you..." the vixen nearly collasped

Delios immediately let go and apologized. The raccoon looked at both animals and said "We need to get out of here now!"

Zargos nodded at the raccoon. "Thank you for pulling us."

Delios smiled. "You're welcome mate. But I didn't do much pulling. I had to hold the rope so you two would come."

Zargos looked at Astra with confusion. "How…"

Astra shook her head. "We need to leave."

"There is one thing I want to do first"

Before waiting for an answer, the cat sped stealthily down the pathway away from the pit and towards the slave compound with his two friends following in tow. Once he got there, he went to the window and whispered loudly "Benjie! Benjie!"

The rabbit's ear perked upwards at the sound of his name and the rabbit woke up. Benjie looked towards the window and pulled a chair. The rabbit looked outside and saw the smiling face of the warrior cat. "Zargos! You are free. What are you doing here? Get out!" Benjie exclaimed.

"Benjie, I will get you out. I promise. You have been a good friend to me and I won't forget that!" Zargos whispered.

"Thank you, but seriously, get out of here. We'll be waiting for you, no matter how long it will take."

"We will come back. There will be a war. I owe you my life Benjie!"

"Zargos!" Benjie said urgently "Leave, now!"

Zargos bowed his head and turned to Delios who was supporting Astra. "Let's go!" he said.

Delios nodded, "Follow me, I know how we can leave. We'll need to knock out some guards and rappel down the walls."

As the three creatures made their way across the grounds towards the battlement, a loud cry was heard. "The slaves are escaping! The slaves are escaping! There is an intruder in the fortress!"

"Great. I guess the lizard had a harder skull." Delios cursed.

The double doors to the castle opened and lizard guards started streaming out of it. One battlement guard spotted the three creature and yelled "I see them! They are down there!"

Delios grunted as he gave Astra to Zargos. Zargos immediately understood and he knelt down. Astra climbed on his back and the warrior cat stood up, immediately used to the added burden. Delios looked around and spotted an opening. "This way! Follow me!" He cried.

The guards on the battlement opened fire, their laser bullets searching for their prey. Fortunately Delios and Zargos had nimble feet and were able to duck and dodge the laser fire. Delios noticed a guard moved to block the three running friends and quick as lightning, the raccoon pulled out two knives in each paw and attacked. The guard didn't stand a chance as the raccoon cut him down. The three creatures continued dodging laser fire as they ran up the stairs on the battlement.

Delios and Zargos looked ahead and saw the guards racing towards them so they turned around and ran the other way down the battlement, their feet pounding on the stony walls. They rounded a corner and saw another group of lizards racing towards them.

"We can't go forward, and we can't go backwards! Where can we go?" Zargos yelled.

Delios looked around with haste, but couldn't find a solution to their predicament. It was Astra that provided the answer to their problem. "We have to go down!" she cried.

"Down? That would take us back to the castle. We want to get AWAY!" Delios argued.

"Not there! Behind us!" Astra pointed backwards.

Delios and Zargos turned to look at what she was talking about. At the edge of the castle wall where they were standing on was a sheer drop down into the lake.

"This is crazy!" Zargos yelled.

"It's our only chance." Astra exclaimed.

"You go first Zargos! You have Astra! Get out of here!" Delios ordered.

Zargos shook his head "I'm not leaving you!"

"Just go! I'll be right behind you!"

The warrior cat holding the vixen nodded. Zargos stepped up on the ledge and after hearing encouragements from Astra, he jumped off and still holding the vixen plummeted towards the lake.

Delios turned and dodged several laser fires that the lizards shot. He threw three knives. The first one was way off the mark as it clattered on the ground before the group of lizards. The second embedded itself into the leg of the lizard and he fell down with a screech. The third and final one hit the lizard into the shoulders and the guard fell off the battlement and landed on the ground with a thud.

Suddenly the lizards were upon the raccoon and he had no chance to leave. Pulling out two more knives, Delios desperately parried the attacks from the lizard swords and bayonets as he backed up stepping on the ledge. Suddenly, the raccoon felt pain as a laser struck home. A warm feeling started tingling across his chest. The raccoon, Delios, swayed for several minutes and fell over the wall and into the lake below.

Kix, the lynx stood watching Delios run towards the battlement as he breathed a quick prayer for his friend to be safe. He stood unmoving against the tree as he waited to see the raccoon appear on the wall with Astra. Seconds became minutes and the minutes dragged on and on. One hour later, Kix decided that he would go to investigate. As he stepped out of the forest, he heard a cry of alarm and immediately stepped back into the shadows. Once he knew that the cry wasn't directed at him, he saw Delios racing with an unrecognizable cat holding Astra on the battlement.

Kix's heart sank. Delios wouldn't be able to make it back to the meeting spot, he realized. He was surrounded by guards and there were far too many of them. His sadness turned to horror as he realized what the cat was doing. The cat held Astra and he jumped off the battlement and fell into the lake. They hit the lake with a splash and Kix held his breath with anticipation. To his fear and dismay, he couldn't see anyone emerging the lake. The lynx turned his attention to the fighting and his best friend.

"JUMP DELIOS! JUMP!" Kix found himself yelling, his words erased from the sound of wind and combat.

Kix saw the raccoon fighting for his life as he stood up on the ledge and saw the laser hit him. His heart plummeted like a rock as he saw Delios sway and straight into the lake. The lynx's stomach clenched and his throat tightened, as tears started to form in his eyes when his best friend didn't break the confines of the water.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

 _Corneria_

Panther could only stare at his long lost father with disbelief. The Emperor could see the shock, dismay, joy, fear, anger and regret flash across his son's face within seconds of each other. As a father, finding his son was a priority. But after scouring Corneria for many years, the Emperor could not find any trace of his prince. He expected a more joyful reunion and yearned to make a connection with his son.

Finally the Emperor couldn't take the silence anymore. He took one step forward, "Son."

Panther cut his father off, his voice cracking. "Don't."

The younger panther was overwhelmed with emotions he hadn't experienced before. As a member of the Star Wolf team, he was subjected to bullying by the lupine if he showed any sign of remorse or even kindness. Immediately the newly-fresh member of the Star Wolf team learned that he needed to suppress the emotions in order to survive. As the years passed, Panther conformed to the environment of the Star Wolf team and won the admiration and even respect of the lupine.

The struggle was clear on the young panther's face. He wanted to rush to the Emperor and give him the biggest hug as possible, but at the same time, Panther felt an overwhelming urge to take out his gun and put a bullet in his father's head.

The Emperor was staring at him expectantly. Commander Ragas' tail was up and the lizard's guns were still trained at the Star Fox and Wolf team. Panther spoke, "Let's talk… Father." When Panther said _father_ it came out as forced, as if he didn't want to say it. "But please order your guards to lower their weapons."

Commander Ragas snorted. "So Star Fox and Wolf can kill us? Never! Guards get ready to fire at command!"

The Emperor shook his head. "Ignore that order! Stand down and hoister your weapons." He turned to Ragas and whispered, "This is my son. If anyone as much touch a hair on his head, kill him."

"But sire!" the lizard commander protested.

"No buts!" The Emperor commanded. "Obey the will of your Emperor!"

The Commander hissed angrily. He looked over the Emperor's shoulder and noticed that the Star Fox and Wolf teams were doing the same thing, although Wolf looked disappointed. The Commander nodded and obeyed his lord as he turned around and issued the order.

With all eyes on them, Panther and his father stood staring at each other. ""But, the raid? Everyone was dead. You… you sent me away."

The Emperor nodded. "A decision I regret every day of my life. Looking back at the moment, I could have done it differently. But this is all in the past and what happens in the past stays in the past son. Focus on the here and the now."

"What about Mother? What about our people? What happened to them?"

The Emperor looked at him sadly. "They're dead. Your mother held out for as long as she could, but her injuries were too great."

"But how did this all happen?"

The Emperor looked at his son and cracked a small smile. He held up the briefcase containing the earring. "It happened because of _THEM!_ " The Emperor roared the last word towards Fox and his team.

Panther turned his attention towards the Star Fox team. The only shocked member was the leader. Fox met Panther's stare and saw anger flash across his eyes. He whispered. "Panther, I don't know anything about this." As he spoke, the vulpine took a short step forward. Fox directed his next question to the Emperor as he kept his gaze on the struggling panther. "We are responsible for this? How?"

The Emperor sighed once again. "Once your team defeated Andross, all of his minions scattered across the Lylat System. Soon they were fighting for the power, but they didn't have the resources. So one of them, a lesser known monkey named Gomar decided they wanted our mines. So they…."

 _The Emperor awoke to cheering outside of his home. He rolled over and saw his wife standing at the window. The black panther groaned as he stood up and walked over to his queen. Pulling her into a hug, he watched the celebration happening through the window. "My dear, what is happening outside? What's all the noise?"_

 _The Queen pulled out of his hug and turned with a smile on her face. "Wonderful news dear husband! The war is finally over! Fox McCloud and the Star Fox team has finally defeated Andross! This sector will finally know peace."_

 _The Emperor planted a kiss on his wife's cheek. He smiled seductively, "That is indeed something to celebrate about," he said as he inched closer and closer to the bed. The queen laughed and smacked him lightly on his back. "You sly rogue," she began._

 _Suddenly the doors to the bedroom burst open and a young kitten ran in beaming and tackled the Emperor in a huge hug. "Father! Mother! The war is over!"_

 _The Emperor laughed jovially as he picked up his son and spun him around. The young kitten giggled as he sailed through the air and found himself on top of the bed. "What does this mean for us father?" he asked_

 _The Emperor sighed. "Who knows Panther? Who knows?" He poked the young kitten on the nose. "The past is certain, because it already happened. But the future is a whole different matter. But with you, and your mother, I am whole and happy again."_

 _He pulled the young kitten into a giant hug then let go. The Queen picked him up and declared "It's time for bed my young kit. The war may be over, but it's still late."_

 _"_ _Can I sleep with you? Please?"_

 _The Queen looked at Panther's giant young eyes and smiled, she turned to her husband. He was doing the same exact expression. The Queen laughed "How can I deny one such look, but two? I am defenseless! Now I know where you get your look from!" She placed Panther back on the bed and put the covers on him. "Now my young kit, go to sleep."_

 _"_ _But Momma! Can I have another bed time story?"_

 _The Queen smiled once more. "Of course Panther. But just one story, then you are going to sleep!"_

 _The Emperor walked back to his window and saw his people celebrating._ The war is over! I can't believe it! _He thought. He turned back and listened to his wife telling the story to his awe-struck son. The Queen noticed him staring and gave him a huge smile. The Emperor's heart raced with love. Love for her, Panther, and his people who were celebrating outside. Another emotion raced across his chest that he hasn't experienced in a long time and that was joy. Joy that the war was finally over._

 _Once the Queen finished the story and Panther fell back asleep, the Emperor walked back to his wife, gave her a kiss and found his way back into his covers. With Panther's head resting on his chest, the Emperor gave out a shudder of joy, and finally fell asleep._

FEW MONTHS LATER….

 _The Emperor wiped his mouth with a napkin and placed it aside. The doors opened with a bang and a young male panther rushed in. He bowed quickly then knelt next to the chair, obviously wanting a private chat. The Emperor looked hurriedly around and noticed that his family was finished with dinner. He cleared his throat and said "Panther, you are excused. You can do whatever you want, but be sure to stay in the Tower." Soon, after the young kitten left the table the Emperor looked at his soldier. "Do you have anything to report?"_

 _"_ _They approach sire. But faster than we had expected. They are expected to land in a few hours" The soldier said._

 _"_ _It is as I had feared." The Emperor said. He cast a quick glance at his wife. The Queen was trying to keep her composure, but the Emperor could tell that she was terrified beyond words. The Emperor sighed sadly._ The war was over only a months ago! Now we are at another? _The black panther turned back to the soldier and said "We are certain that they are going to be after our mines?"_

 _The soldier nodded quickly. "Yes sire, that's what the reports are saying."_

 _The Emperor looked at his wife once again and immediately came to a decision. "We are but a small section. We made it through the war, and we will once again. Sound the alarms, we must have our people be ready to fight."_

 _"_ _Fight? But sire, they out number us at least five to one! No, you and your family need to leave!"_

 _The Emperor stood up quickly. "And forsake my people? No! My heart belongs here!"_

 _The Queen held back a sob and the Emperor looked at her, "I'm sorry my darling. It is my decision. But I want you to take Panther and leave this land. I will hail you back when this fight is finished." He turned back to the soldier "What are you waiting for? Go and sound the alarms!"_

 _The soldier bowed hurriedly, his helmet falling down onto the floor with a clank. He quickly picked it up and put it back on his head and rushed out of the room._

 _The Emperor turned back to his wife and placed his paw on her face. "I'm sorry my love. But you know better than anyone else. My duty belongs to my people."_

 _The Queen nodded sadly. "And my duty is to you my dear husband. I shall do what you wish."_

 _The Emperor smiled. "Thank you wife. Go and prepare yourself!" The Emperor and the Queen kissed each other deeply and it was during that kiss the Emperor forgot about everything. His heart swelled as he remembered why he married the beautiful woman. The Queen was the kindest, and the gentlest soul he had ever met. His love for her knew no bounds. Finally the Queen pulled away and gave a smile of sadness and exited out of the room._

 _Once his wife left, the Emperor walked back upstairs to his room. Outside the bells tolled a warning sound. Creatures rushed around gathering their personal belongings and hiding them. Every creature, young and old grabbed whatever they could use as a weapon. Soldiers formed a protective ring around the small city and they held up their swords and guns, ready for the inevitable to happen._

 _The Emperor walked outside, the sun glistening off his chest armor. "My people!" he cried out "Today is the day we make a mark in history. Today is the day when we make ourselves known! When they come and touch our land, show them what we are made of! Show them that you won't back off! Fight for your lands, your honor and most of all, fight for your family!" The cheering rose up from the citizens and soldiers. As soon as it subsided, the Emperor continued. "It is my greatest honor to serve you. All of you are loyal and honorable! It makes me proud to be your Emperor!"_

 _The cheering arose again, but it quickly stopped as an explosion sounded. "They're coming!" the soldiers yelled._

 _"_ _Stand fast! Show courage!" the Emperor retorted._

 _He heard footsteps approach behind him and looked back. His wife strode outside of the Tower, dressed in armor with two swords slung behind her back. At her side, was a pistol and she wore her chest plate with pride, the insignia of a rose blazing underneath the sun._

 _"_ _I thought I told you to go with Panther?" the Emperor asked._

 _"_ _And I told you that my duty was to you. I would never leave you." The Queen answered._

 _"_ _Panther?"_

 _"_ _He will be fine. I plotted the course to Corneria. He will be safe there." As soon as the Queen said those words, the Emperor noticed a ship rise up and take off in the other direction, zooming out of sight._

He won't know any more bloodshed. Be safe Panther and know that your father always loves you. _The Emperor thought._

 _He turned and gave his wife a quick kiss on the cheek. "I love you. To the end of the line."_

 _"_ _I love you too. To the end of the line."_

"The ships landed and the fighting began. Our people held up valiantly but it was too late. They slaughtered all of us." The Emperor pointed at Panther. "Your mother was a goddess. She was the bravest creature out of all of us. Once the fighting was over, and they thought I was dead, the creatures left, taking all of our resources with them. I was near death, but gravely injured. That is how I lost my eye. I made my way to my wife, your mother, and found her still alive. I tried to nurse her back to health, but" the Emperor paused, emotion appearing in his voice. "She died. Her death was the final straw and it all started because of the war! Therefore the blame belongs to them!"

Up in the Great Fox, Peppy was muttering, "Panther you idiot. Can't you see he's playing you? He's trying to get you to turn against your team." The old hare felt very useless.

Suddenly an idea struck him. He turned in the captain chair and was relieved to hear that ROB walked in the bridge. "ROB, we're going to put a tracking signal on the Emperor's ship.

"The percentage of success by physically going down onto Corneria and stealthily placing a tracking signal on the ship without being caught is 0.0000000000001%." ROB calculated.

Peppy laughed. "You know how to make an old man smile! You're funny ROB."

"Humor is not programmed in my computer."

Peppy clicked his tongue. "Right. But what if we can manipulate the scanner, so that instead of scanning for radio waves, it only scans the heat signature that the ship gives off? Ohhh! Only if Slippy was here!"

"It may work" ROB answered. "I will get on it."

"Good!" Peppy swiveled around to listen to the conversation. "Keep him talking Panther."

The Emperor continued, "If the Star Fox team had never destroyed Andross, we would still be alive. Our people would be alive. _Your Mother_ would be alive!"

Anger overtook the leader of the Star Fox team as he yelled, "That's ridiculous! If Andross was still alive, your planet would be destroyed anyways! The _entire_ Lylat System would have been obliterated!"

"That may be so." The Emperor argued, "But we would have died as a _family!_ "

"And what about me? Your son?" Panther interrupted, forcing the Emperor to turn his attention on his son.

"I wanted to find you, but I couldn't! I was too busy rebuilding!"

"You mean planning your revenge? I can't believe this! You abandoned me!"  
"I sent you away to protect you!" The Emperor retorted. "If you had died, I would have lost everything!"

"You have lost everything? That's a laugh! What about me Father? You sent me to Corneria! You don't know how dangerous it was here! I had to do some… unspeakable things to survive! You speak of losing everything, when _I_ have lost everything!"

The Emperor nodded slowly. "You're right. I am sorry. I am sorry that you had to experience horrible things, but they made you into who you are right now. For that, I am extremely grateful."

"Grateful? If you were _grateful_ about anything! You would have come after me!"

"And I did, Panther! I returned to Corneria and searched for you! But I couldn't find you and I had to assume the worst. Please, Panther. Come with me. Forsake those people you call friends. What have they ever done for you? Bully you? I see underneath the black fur a bruise. Was that from Wolf?"

The dilemma was clear on Panther's face. He wanted to go back to his father and be with him. After years of fighting and surviving, he only wanted a family. The cat took a few steps forward, and he slowly walked towards his father, knowing that all eyes were upon him.

Wolf couldn't believe what was happening. The Emperor was turning his own member against him! "Panther!" he called out.

The panther stopped walking and turned around and saw the lupine. At the moment, he came to a decision. The panther turned away and continued walking.

Finally he stopped a few feet before his father. "Father, I know how much I want to be a family." He began, "The thing is, I already have a family now. And that family is Star Wolf. You asked what they have done for me? They taught me how to survive." He rolled his paw into a fist and drove it across his father's jaw. The Emperor staggered backwards. Commander Ragas advanced forward towards the panther, but the Emperor raised his paw. The lizard stopped mid advance, as Panther kept walking. Another punch and another grunt.

"They gave me a purpose!" A punch and a grunt.

"They gave me a reason to live!" A punch and another grunt, but this grunt was a true sound of pain.

"You abandoned me!" Panther yelled. "You should have never stopped looking for me! I am ashamed to call you my father! My mother was a better creature than you ever were!" Panther rained punch after punch on his father. But the last punch he threw was stopped by the Emperor. The Emperor stood up, holding Panther's paw in his hand and pushed him away. After wiping blood from his lips, he started to laugh.

"I knew you had it in you Panther! But do you think this will change anything? It won't!" He turned his gaze towards the Star Fox team, "My revenge is at hand. Soon, everything you know will be gone!"

"Why the earring?" Fox yelled out. "What do you need it for?"

"The earring? I don't need the earring!" The Emperor laughed. "I just needed the Cerinian metal."

"Just the metal? There are hundreds of ways to gather that! Why go through all of this trouble?"

The Emperor laughed once again. "Just to get you chasing your own tails. Just a little torture on my part. I'll have you know that, your loved one, your Krystal? She died screaming."

Fox exploded. "I'll kill you for that you scum! I'll kill you!" As soon as he charged, Falco and Slippy grabbed him and held him back. "Stop Fox! You'll kill us all!"

Falco nodded in agreement. "Not now," he muttered. "You'll have your chance."

The Emperor overheard the exchange. "Chance? I'm afraid that your chance is gone. With this metal, I have the ability to destroy everything. And my first target? Corneria! Which is why I am leaving you alive to see your destruction!"

The mad panther laughed wildly and turned around. He advanced up the ramp of his ship with Commander Ragas and the lizard soldiers in tow. The ramp closed with a hiss and a thud, and the ship hovered for a few minutes and flew away.

Panther stood for a few moments, watching his father disappear. The silent was broken with Leon's groaning. The chameleon woke up. "What did I miss?"

"Idiot." Wolf snarled as he kicked Leon in the chest. Panther smiled at his leader's anger. Wolf turned and walked to Fox. "Well, have fun on your hunt! We have what we came for, we have our money. Star Wolf, let's move out!"

Panther interrupted. "I'm staying with the Star Fox team."

"What?"

"Yes, what Wolf said. What?" Falco answered.

"I need to stop my father. As much as he is family, I can't see my other family and my real home, Corneria, destroyed."

Fox smiled. "Thank you Panther. We would really appreciate your help. And Wolf. Your help would be appreciated too."

Wolf muttered a few curse words to himself. Finally he made up his mind and crossed his arms. "Well, Panther's father," Wolf said _father_ as he made his paws into quotation marks, "did say he wanted to kill you. We all know that I get to be the one that kills you."

Fox grinned. "I wouldn't want it to be any other way." He immediately turned on his communicator. "Please Peppy. Tell me you saw and heard all of that."

Static sounded and Peppy's voice was heard. "Yes Fox! I heard him. We also figured out a way to track him! But ROB can't get it to work. We need Slippy."

"What do I need to do?" Slippy asked.

"Modify the sensors that instead of scanning for radio waves, scan for heat signatures." Peppy answered.

"So we can follow the ship thrusters! That's brilliant Peppy! I can do it!"

"Well, we have no time to waste! Falco, Slippy, and I are going to the Great Fox. Star Wolf…" Fox began

"We're right behind you." Wolf answered. "Don't worry, we won't get on your precious Great Fox. Not that I want to anyways."

Fox nodded. "Alright Falco, Slippy. Let's go. Peppy, please prepare the Great Fox for departure."

"You got it Fox!"

The Star Fox team hurried back through the town until they reached their Arwings. Jumping in, the coms beeped in Fox's Arwing. Peppy's voice rang through, "Great Fox is ready for departure. ROB is opening the hatch. You are all set to land."

"Thanks Peppy." Fox switched the communications off.

Once everyone arrived at the Great Fox and got out of their planes, the three friends headed towards the command bridge. A thought appeared to Fox and he stopped the blue bird. "Falco, I need you to contact King Tricky. Tell him we have a lead."

The blue bird gave a small incline of his head and left the group, making his way to the communications room. The vulpine walked with the green toad in silent until they finally made their way to the command bridge. The door slid open and Fox noticed Peppy standing up, studying the vast space before him. Not saying a word, Fox walked and stood next to the old hare. Slippy immediately went to the control board and started to work.

Peppy sighed, "They went that way Fox"

Fox nodded but Peppy wasn't finished. "After hearing Panther talk to his father, it caused me to realize something….I'm sorry."

Fox looked confused as he looked at his oldest mentor. "For what?"

Peppy laughed. "Everything I guess. You know, when your father died, it fell down to me to take care of you. To teach you and in some ways, I feel like I have failed you. You've seen and experienced too much for any creature and I'm sorry for that. In some ways, I wish you didn't have this life. I wasn't ready to be a father. I didn't know how to be a father and I didn't want to enforce myself on you, you know?"

Fox was silent, so Peppy continued "You started out so young. You just finished flight school in Corneria. Your life was good, until suddenly you had this mantle passed upon you. If I had to go back and do it all over again, I would have protected you from this life. You have lost everything and I am truly sorry for that."

The old hare turned away from the vulpine who was listening intently and silently looked out at the space. He felt a paw on his shoulder and Peppy looked back at the smiling fox, whose eyes were misting with tears.

"Peppy, I haven't lost everything. Sure, I have lost my father, but I haven't lost my family. You became like a father to me and I am thankful for your guidance and leadership. The Star Fox team wouldn't be the same without you. But family is what is important here. Family is what is driving me to find her. She is alive out there, regardless what the crazy panther says. I know she is out there and she needs us. So Peppy, you have nothing to be sorry for."

The hare smiled and nodded. He turned and embraced the vulpine into a long hug. Letting go of each other, Fox turned and motioned towards Slippy. "Slippy, how is it going?"

"Um, it's… being stubborn!" Slippy grunted. The toad gave the control board a whack with his fist. The board suddenly beeped and trilled. Slippy pressed another button and a virtual map appeared out. "Aha! It worked!"

Fox leaned in closer, studying the map. "Do you know where he is going?"

Slippy pressed another button. "It seems he's…. you're not going to like this!" The toad gulped nervously.

"It's no time for games Slippy! Tell me."

"It's the same planet that Krystal crash landed on when we answered the SOS call."

The door hissed open and the blue bird walked in. The vulpine turned to greet his friend. "King Tricky is thrilled beyond words to know we have a lead. I also told him about the possibility that Krystal is indeed alive and he says to remind you 'Dinosaur Planet is always open for you for your honeymoon.'" Falco snickered. "But wants to know if you need any help. He's contacted Queen CloudRunner and both tribes have agreed to help you."

Fox smiled. "King Tricky is a good dinosaur. No, I think this is a matter we need to take care of ourselves." Suddenly the screen above the control board flashed and Wolf's grinning face appeared.

"Hello Fox. Please tell me you found where they've gone. Panther's gone out of his mind with boredom."

"You mean _you've_ gone out of your mind with boredom" Falco interrupted

"You're darn right I am bored. And when I'm bored, I do stupid things."

"Like start the Star Wolf team?" Falco asked snarkily. Falco laughed out loud.

Wolf glared at both creatures and shook his head resignedly. "I don't have time for this."

"Just follow us Wolf, and stay out of trouble." Fox said.

"No promises pup!" Wolf flashed a grin and the screen went black.

Fox turned his attention to the robot at the controls. "ROB. Is the portal warmed up?"

"Affirmative"

"Fire it up when ready. Falco, Slippy gather your gear and meet me in the hangar. We need to move quickly."

Both the bird and toad nodded. Within seconds Falco and Slippy were out of the command bridge, following Fox's orders.

After watching them disappear, Fox looked at Peppy. The aged hare sat back down in the captain's chair with a sigh. "I'm assuming you want me up here?" Peppy asked.

Fox nodded. "It's going to be tough down there Peppy. I need you here to give us tactical support and recon. But if we are unresponsive, contact King Tricky and General Pepper. They'll know what to do."

"You got it."

As Fox turned to leave the command bridge, he heard Peppy's voice. "And Fox?"

"Yeah Peppy?

"Be safe."

Fox gave his mentor and father figure a sly wink. "Aren't I always?"

Before the doors closed Fox could hear Peppy calling after him "No, you never are!" Fox gave a small smile. It was hard for him to grow up without a father, but Peppy filled in the role to the best of his ability. Sure, Peppy wasn't perfect but Fox appreciated the stern manner and the wisdom of the hare.

Fox walked down the hallway and into his room. As soon as the doors closed behind him, the leader of the Star Fox team quickly took the staff off his back and placed it on his bed. He moved to the corner of his room where he had a knapsack, tucked away underneath a chair. The vulpine opened the knapsack and placed different items that he felt vital to the mission. Soon the backpack was full of different kinds of weapons Fox had gathered over the years. _Go big or go home_ the vulpine grunted. He closed the backpack, swung it over his shoulders, picked up the staff and attached it to his back again. Fox gave his room a one last look over and finally left.

ROB's voice echoed throughout the hallways of the Great Fox. "We've passed through the portal! Planet Dager ETA 10 minutes."

Once he heard the message, Fox immediately contacted Peppy. "Move the Great Fox a little bit further away. I don't want them to know that we are here."

"Understood!"

Down in the hangar, Falco and Slippy was already waiting for him. Fox gave a small silent of greeting as he made his way to his Arwing. Already his coms crackled and Falco's voice was heard.

"Ready to kick some butt and take names McCloud?"

"As ready as ever Falco!" was the response.

Once Fox climbed in his Arwing, he made direct contact with Wolf. Wolf's grim face appeared. "What do you want McCloud?"

"We're about to leave the Great Fox."

"Good for you. What? Do you need my help to hold your hand?"

Leon's snickers could be heard. Fox rolled his eyes. "Wolf. We need to stick together. That means no us, no killing us and definitely no shenanigans."

Wolf was taken aback. "You really think so low of me Fox? I'm offended!"

Fox smiled. "Wolf. I know it takes a lot more to hurt your feelings. Also you'd do anything for money."

"Fox! You know me so well! It's like we were meant for each other."

"Oh get a room guys!" Falco interrupted. "Save your bromance for another day."

"Alright, alright." Wolf said. "Meet us at these coordinates. We'll be waiting." With that being said, Wolf's face disappeared.

The three Arwings hovered and one by one shot out into space. The giant green planet loomed ahead of the Star Fox team. Fox logged in the coordinates and started to follow the map that appeared. As the three Arwings got closer and closer to the planet, Fox could feel his hear crawl into his throat. They were approaching the asteroid field that held the SOS call and where Krystal was shot down. Flashes of that day appeared in Fox's mind but he immediately suppressed them. _Gotta focus on the mission_.

The Star Fox team flew in silent save for Falco's occasional humming of "You Give Love a Bad Name." Finally the team arrived at the coordinates and saw the three Wolfens hovering in place as promised.

"We're going to go down and stop him once and for all." Fox said. "We need to stick together."

Through the cockpit, the vulpine could see Wolf, Leon and Panther nodding. "After you McCloud." Wolf said.

The six ships flew off towards the giant planet with Fox in the lead. Once the vulpine got in contact with the planet's atmosphere, he felt a shudder in his Arwing and he moved his ship to match the change of the gravitational pull. Trees of all sizes started appearing and Fox stomach clenched at the thought of searching for Krystal for many weeks.

Slippy's voice broke his thoughts. "The Emperor landed around a hundred miles away. At least that's what I'm assuming. He's not moving at all."

Fox nodded. "Alright everyone. We need to find a place to land."

As soon as the leader of the Star Fox team said that, he noticed one Wolfen veering off to the left. "Wolf. What are you doing?" Fox asked.

"Panther just mentioned that he saw a giant field to the south. Looks like a perfect place to land our ships."

"Wolf. We need to stay together."

Wolf didn't listen. Instead he issued a quick order to Leon and Panther to follow him. The three Wolfens changed course and headed south. Fox shook his head and did the same thing, ordering Falco and Slippy to follow.

Wolf, or at least Panther, was right. In the middle of the forest was a huge field with a small stream running through it. The Wolfens and the Arwings managaged to land onto the grass safely. Everyone got out of their own ships and grouped together.

Falco sighed. "I have a bad feeling about this. We're too exposed."

Leon dismissed the comment. "What could go wrong?"

But Fox nodded. "I agree with Falco. Wolf, we are too exposed. We have no way to hide our ships."

Wolf shot back. "Look around you McCloud." He gestured to the area. "There's no one except for us."

Fox sighed and nodded resignedly. _Wolf's right for the moment_ , he thought _but the sooner we leave, the sooner we won't be exposed._ The vulpine came to a quick decision and contacted Peppy. Once Peppy came to the radio, Fox asked him to initiate a camouflage shield on the ships, and soon the Arwings and the Wolfens materialized, blending with the environment.

Fox shouldered his knapsack. "Let's go." He took the lead with Panther, Falco, Slippy, Leon and finally Wolf bringing up the rear. They entered the forest and continued to walk in the direction that the Emperor was in by following the map on Slippy's tablet.

Hours passed and the sun started to set. Fox stopped abruptly, with everyone crashing into him. "What did you do that for McCloud?" Wolf grumpily asked.

"Do you hear that?" the vulpine asked.

Wolf gave a close listen. The only thing he heard was the wind. "Just the wind. Nothing else."

Fox nodded. "Since when were forests this quiet?"

Wolf shrugged. "Who cares? Let's keep moving.

Fox felt himself being pushed as Wolf moved around him. Suddenly the vulpine saw a movement to his left and immediately yelled "Find cover!"

It was too late, Leon slumped over, a dart sticking out of his neck. Soon Falco, Slippy, Panther and Wolf followed suit. Fox looked around, heard a very soft _whitf_ and immediately ducked. The dart sailed harmlessly over his head and clattered against the tree. The vulpine got on his stomach and crawled quickly away from the unconscious group. Once he got to a tree, he slowly stood up, and kept his back to the trunk. He moved around the tree, away from the group and waited.

A figure appeared out, walking past the tree and in a flash Fox was all over it. He tackled the figure down to the ground, pulled out his pistol and pressed it against it's body. Fox pulled the hood off the figure and noticed it wasn't a lizard, but instead a female raccoon. Before he could ask who she was, the raccoon gave out a shrill whistle.

Pain was the first thing that Fox felt as the dart embedded itself in his neck. He plucked the dart out and fell back onto the dirt groaning. He tried to stand up, but dizziness over took him as he fell back on the ground. The last thing he saw was three faces staring over him, then everything went black.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

 _Dager_

Everything moved in slow motion before the heart broken lynx as he stood at the edge of the forest. He vaguely remembered screaming for his best friend to jump and felt the icy hands of fear grip his heart as he witnessed his best friend take a shot directly in the chest and fall backwards. The name of his best friend was trapped in his throat, as Kix could only watch helplessly as the raccoon, Delios, hurtle towards the icy cold water, in the dead of night. Torches were illuminated as the lizard guards held them aloft over their heads, not one willing to take the jump to go after the raccoon. Finally one by one the guards left, the light leaving the fortress and the sheer drop from the castle wall and into the lake. Kix stood motionlessly, stuck in shock, the memory of his best friend falling, etched in his head. The cold wind blew, ruffling the fur on the back of the lynx's neck, waking him up from his stupor.

Kix ran out of the forest and onto the shore of the lake, yet wary to enter the freezing waters. Fear gripped him when he couldn't find the creatures he was looking for in the dead of night.

"Astra…. Delios?" he whispered.

No answer.

"Astra….Delios!" he tried again, a bit louder.

No answer.

 _No… no… NOT THEM!_ Kix thought as he started to wade in. The water was incomparable to anything he has ever felt. The freezing cold temperature of the lake sent daggers into his body, but Kix ignored it as he continued to search for his friend. Once the waters reached the lynx's midsection, he was starting to feel the effects. His teeth chattered and his body started to shake as black spots danced before his eyes. But the lynx was stubborn and he didn't want to give up.

After ten minutes of searching in the frigid waters, Kix felt his body starting to break. He backed up towards shore, his body shaking but his eyes still searching for his friend. Once the waters reached his ankles, Kix turned around and knelt down onto the sand, speechless and overcome with emotions. Then he turned his head up to the sky and screamed a heart-wrenching scream. Pain, sorrow and loss was loose in that long scream and Kix didn't care if anybody heard. He had failed everybody, his family, Delios, Astra, Zargos and even the small resistance group. He was tired of the fight, tired of constantly losing his loved ones. He just wanted to die, to escape the world and to be reunited with his family and his best friend once again. He smashed his fist on the soggy sand over and over, before unleashing another blood-curdling scream. As soon as his voice became raw from screaming, Kix bent his body, his head touching the sand and wept.

Then out of the dead of the night, a voice whispered through the winds _Kix._

The lynx's head snapped up. "Who said that?"

The voice started again _Kix…. This way…._

The lynx turned his head to the left and saw the shoreline of the lake and the trees of the forest. Not understanding what was happening, Kix didn't move.

 _Trust me…. Follow my voice…._

After several minutes of indecision, Kix finally made up his mind. He stood up slowly and looked back at the trees, where he was standing, watching his best friend scale the walls. Finally he ran back to the same spot and grabbed his backpack. He opened his backpack and pulled out a blanket and wrapped himself, conserving all the body heat that he could and started to head in the direction the voice supposedly came from. The lynx walked along the shore and stumbled several times because he didn't have anything to light the way. But his night vision allowed him to make out shapes in the dark.

 _Almost there… almost…._

Once he heard that, Kix started to pick up his pace. He silently moved along the shore until his night vision picked up two undistinguishable shapes in the distance. Emboldened by the prospect of what it could be, the lynx picked up the speed until he was sprinting. Kix ignored the cold, and the fact that he was about to crash into the ground with exhaustion, but the lynx kept tapping into the diminishing reserves of strength and energy and he kept going. After several minutes of sprinting hard, he finally reached the shapes that he couldn't make out. His night vision confirmed his worst fears, for they were the unmoving bodies of Astra and Zargos. Immediately, the lynx placed his ear on Zargos' chest, praying to every god in the Lylat System that he was still alive.

Nothing.

Then he placed his ear on Astra's chest.

Sound!

Taking off his blanket, Kix wrapped Astra in the blanket and attempted to resuscitate the cat lying next to her. He tried again and again to failure every time. Each fail brought a tear of frustration streaming down the wet face of the lynx. Out of the corner of his eye, somebody stirred. Kix turned and looked at the snowy vixen and saw that she was slowly getting up. The lynx turned his attention back to her and attempted to get her to lie back down, but Astra refused. Once Kix tried again more forcibly to push her back down, Astra, with one paw, pushed hard on the chest of the lynx and pushed him out of the way. Kix fell back on the sand, startled and started to gasp with fear at the events unfolding before him. Astra had reached Zargos and placing one paw on his chest, spoke a language that the lynx had never heard before, and her paw started to glow white. Her eyes made contact with Kix's and the lynx backed up even further, nearly touching the lake. Instead of the beautiful turquoise color that Kix was accustomed to, her eyes were shining solid gold.

Few minutes passed, then color rushed back to Zargos' pale face. Pain flashed through his chest as the cat woke up quickly. Immediately he turned over on his hands and knees and started to hack. Water gushed out of his mouth as he coughed it all out of his lungs. He groaned with agony and sat down on the sand, closing his eyes as he willed for the anguish to pass.

Astra sighed with satisfaction and concentrated once again. She murmured another dialect in an unrecognizable language and Kix watched with fascination as her cuts and bruises started to heal. The cuts from the Commander's torture closed up, leaving no scars and the bruises melted away into her body, as the blood veins repaired themselves. Once she opened her eyes, Kix noticed that it was replaced once again with a turquoise color.

Immediately, the vixen looked at her friend. "Where's Delios?"

"He didn't make it. Took a bullet in his chest and did a free fall into the lake." Kix answered, his eyes already wet with tears.

Astra shook her head. "That can't be right" she muttered to herself softly. "I-"

"Who are you?" Kix asked pointing a claw at Astra, interrupting her thoughts.

Astra took a small step forward. Once Kix saw that movement, he took a quick step back.

"Kix, please. It's me, Astra." The vixen pleaded taking another step

"Stop! You are not moving another muscle until you explain what this is!" Kix demanded. "I've seen… I've seen… a miracle! You just brought him back from the dead!"

"Yes. But I have no time to explain!" Astra argued

"No time? This is a perfect time to explain!" Kix growled. "You should have told us that you were able to do this! You could have saved everybody from our resistance!"

"Okay Kix," Astra nodded. "I'll explain to you right now what is happening, while the soldiers are searching for us. Then they'll catch us because we are out in plain sight. In fact, I can still see the castle. So do you want me to explain, or shall I do that when we get out of here first?"

Slowly, Kix nodded. "Let's go." Astra turned to leave but was felt pulled back by the lynx. "You better explain everything and you better hope I like your story, otherwise I will kill you."

Astra gave a small smile. "I believe you, but you won't. More accurately, you _can't_." She pulled out of Kix's grasp and helped Zargos up. Kix packed everything up in his knapsack and the three comrades hurried back into the jungle, out of the sight of the Emperor's castle."

/

The fire was very warm and very inviting as Astra scooched in closer to the flames. She pulled up her blanket, warding her naked body from the cold wind. Her clothes was laid upon a sturdy stick that Kix had found, hanging above the fire. Normally, she would have been uncomfortable being so vulnerable, but she knew Kix and the lynx had treated her for injuries multiple times and her instincts told her that Zargos was an honorable man. Zargos and Kix sat around the fire in silence, both alone in their own thoughts. The vixen's stomach growled, begging for food, but she ignored it as she kept her eyes on the flames. _Fire is so beautiful, but so deadly. Powerful, but vulnerable._ Her thoughts turned to her fallen friend, a raccoon that was willing to give up his life. _Delios was a good man. He was a lot like fire. Courageous, fearless, and a spark that could turn into a flame. He was our torch. He will be missed._

Zargos stood up and with permission from the lynx looked through Kix's knapsack. He pulled out several apples and threw one to the vixen. Astra wolfed down the apple, the juice running down her throat as she savored the taste. Immediately, her stomach begged for more and Astra's eyes darted to the cat. Zargos only smiled and pulled out another apple from the backpack and threw it to the vixen. She caught the apple and admired its ripeness. Once she bit down on the fruit, she took care to enjoy every sweet bite. Her stomach enjoyed its reward and she smiled with pleasure, enjoying the juicy taste. Once she finished her second apple, she threw the core behind her into the forest.

The wind blew once again, sending chills down Astra's spine. She shivered and pulled up her blanket. The leaves rustled in response with the wind and the flames from the fire battled the darkness that was surrounding them. But the true darkness that Astra could feel was coming from her leader, Kix. _He struggled with everything and lost everyone. It's going to be hard to explain._

On cue, Kix threw the stick that he was holding into the fire and made immediate eye contact with the snowy vixen. "Explain… everything… now." He said with calm fury in each word.

Astra opened her mouth to speak, but Zargos interrupted, directing the words at the angry lynx. "We need to talk."

Kix looked slowly at the cat who was already starting to stand up. His eyes followed Zargos as he walked several feet away from the fire, yet out of earshot. Kix looked back at Astra who made no move and the lynx stood up. He walked to the cat and before he could ask what was going on, Zargos spoke up. "You need to stop."

"Stop what?" Kix said quizzically.

"Stop treating her like the enemy. Treat her as a friend."

"I don't know her anymore. What I have just witnessed, healing you and bringing you back from the dead, she shouldn't kept that from us! We could've save a lot more creatures from our war with the Emperor!" Kix argued

Zargos nodded slowly. "Maybe she has a reason for keeping her powers hidden."

"That's what I want to find out."

"But please. I know that we don't know each other and I'm sorry for your friend. He was an honorable man and I'm proud to have known him for a very short time. But take it easy on her. She's struggling too, I can tell. Delios wasn't your only friend you know? He was hers also."

"That doesn't mean she has to hide who she is."

"I agree. But like what I said, she must have a reason. Please listen to her and DON'T, I mean DON'T hurt her. Look, we spoke of you and you should see her smiling. She was so proud of you and Delios. She was sure that you would be there for her and you were! The vixen there never gave up hope because her trust was in the right place."

Kix shook his head unconvinced. Zargos placed his paw on the lynx's chest, over his heart. "Astra loves you. I can tell. It may not be true love but I know she will die for you. When she was with me, she had a fire in her spirit, yet she was calm. The Commander laid his claws and tail on her, but she fought. Kix, she's a warrior and she will be very vital. Please, don't let your loss blind you from your real friends."

Kix was silent then he sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry."

Zargos shook his head. "Don't apologize to me. Apologize to her." He pointed at the vixen with a claw and Kix followed it. His eyes rested on Astra and could see that she was struggling with the death of Delios. Her eyes were wet with tears and she constantly wiped her nose. She sniffled and started to cry softly again.

Kix looked down on the ground, guilty of his treatment towards one of his closest friends and ally. He nodded and made his way back to his sleeping bag by the fire. The lynx sat down with a sigh and could feel Astra's eyes on him. Finally he gave out a small chuckle as Zargos sat down in his normal place.

"Kix, I-" Astra started.

Kix raised his paw and cut her off. The three friends sat in silence around the fire and finally the lynx spoke, "Astra, I want to apologize for my treatment to you earlier and I just wanted to thank you for bringing Zargos back to us. I have decided to respect you and I want to say that your life is your business and I don't want to pry into it.

Astra smiled. "Thank you Kix. I accept your apology." She brought the blanket in closer and spoke again "But I owe you an explanation."

"What do you know about the Higher Beings of this planet?" The vixen started.

Zargos only shook his head, but Kix spoke up. "They roamed this planet for many centuries, keeping the planet alive. But as the years went by, they started to die because the creatures started to forget them. Because they were being forgotten, they started to fade away or die. But that's just legend."

Astra only smiled. "According to legend, these gods, goddesses and spirits were responsible in keeping this planet alive. Everything you see around you, the trees, the dirt, the wind were all created by them. But in order for them to stay alive, they needed to be known or to be remembered. So they created the first Dageroons, a creature that this planet was named after and are now extinct. For thousands of years, the gods, goddesses and spirit lived in harmony among with the Dageroons. The Dageroons built shrines and altars everywhere, remembering and worshipping the higher beings, and being true to the higher beings' word, the planet thrived. Oh! It was so beautiful here. The flowers were always in full bloom! The sun was kind to us and the wind was never harsh! The grounds were always fertile feeding the Dageroons for generations after generations. But with each year, a darkness started to grow."

"A darkness?" Zargos interrupted. "What sort of darkness are we talking about?"

Kix punched the cat softly in the shoulder. "Let her finish. You told me to listen, so that means no talking!"

"A darkness, as in an evil." Astra explained. "The Dageroons were content with their lives because everything was provided to them. They had no drive to improve their lives, because why would they? But as the years passed, other creatures from different planets and systems found our planet and wished to settle here. The Dageroons welcomed them with open arms, which was a fatal mistake because it only allowed the evilness to come. The evil was greed, jealously, corruption and it plagued the minds and hearts of the Dageroons. One by one, each creature searched for success and they murdered, lied, stole, and started to forget about the ones that created them. Shrines and altars were ripped down and the powers of the higher beings began to fade. In a last ditch effort to save everyone, the gods, goddesses and spirits rained fire from the sky and destroyed every single creature on this planet."

"They felt guilty of their actions, but swore that everything would be better a second time. The small group of high beings created the Dageroons and everything went back to normal. The planet flourished as the shrines and altars were raised to worship them. But they were afraid that the evil would corrupt their creation once again, so using their powers, they created Kirowume. Kirowume, or the Spirit of Balance was tasked with balancing the life of the planet. Soon after Kirowume was created, the higher beings realized their mistake. In order for the planet to be truly balanced, the evil must be welcomed. The darkness grew and it overcame the planet a second time and plagued the minds of the Dageroons. Once the scales tipped towards the side of the evil, Kirowume struck them down, balancing the scales once again. Because of this evil, the shrines and altars were destroyed and one by one, the gods, goddesses and spirits started to die."

"So they are all dead?" Kix asked.

It was Zargos' turn to punch the lynx. "Shhh!" he said. Then he motioned for Astra to continue her story.

"Kirowume learned that her power was too great and too harsh. If she kept using her power, soon life of this planet would be gone because the balance between good creatures and evil creatures must always remain the same. So if the scales tipped one way, she would kill those creatures and if the scales were tipped the other way, she would kill those creatures. Soon there wouldn't be life on this planet and like the higher beings, she would perish. Kirowume decided that she wouldn't interfere in the ways of the Dageroons and other creatures living on this planet, appeared to one creature. She directed that creature to build a shrine in Kegos, a northern providence of this planet, where the Spirit would slumber. Once that matter was done, Kirowume went into her jail and swore to never leave again until she was needed."

"So what part do you play in all of this?" Zargos asked. Then his eyes went wide open with realization. "You're the creature Kirowume told to build the shrine! And because of your dedication and obedience, Kirowume has blessed you!"

Astra laughed. "Not quite."

"I know how we can defeat the Emperor!" Kix said suddenly, standing up. "We just need to go to Kegos and wake up the Spirit. Once she realizes what is happening, she would surly help us!"

Astra nodded slowly. "She's already awake."

"How do you know?"

"You're talking to her."

Kix slowly sat back down as her words registered. "You, you're her?" he said incredulously. "Then do something!"

Astra looked at him quizzically. "Like what?"

"I don't know! Snap your claws or something! Make the Emperor die!"

Astra laughed softly. "If only that would work. I'm afraid that I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because this body you see before yourselves are not my own. If I revealed myself in my true form, everyone on this planet would have perished. You'd have disintegrated on the spot."

"So this is a possession?" Zargos spoke up. "Who's the lucky creature?"

Astra furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't know. When we merged, she shielded herself from me somehow. Her ability to keep me from seeing her true identity is… amazing. She is one of the most powerful hosts I've ever been in."

"So what? You just float around invisible and you just go into anyone you want?" Zargos asked.

"I could if I wanted to, but I don't like to do that. I found her near a crash site. She was weak, in pain, but still alive. I offered to keep her alive and she accepted. But when we merged, she blocked all of her memories. So I don't know who she is."

"And what will happen to her when you are done?" Kix wondered.

"She will be fine. I healed her and she has been healed. But when I am in a host, my powers are limited. To use all of them would result in her death. But I have a feeling that she is a fighter, a warrior, fearless and brave. She.." Astra paused, closing her eyes and concentrating, "… has love. She yearns for someone and wants to be reunited with him. I don't know who."

"Say, when I was on the shore… the voice…. Was that you?" Kix questioned.

Astra smiled hugely. "A part of my essence, yes. I willed part of my spirit to leave this body to guide you back here. If you haven't arrived in time, all would have been lost. You see-" Astra continued when she saw Kix open his mouth to ask another question, "if I don't wholly leave her, her body will reject me and she will die. So in order to leave this host, I have to leave her with my entire being."

Zargos and Kix sat around the fire speechless. Kix picked up another piece of twig from the ground and stared at the crackling flames. Finally after a few minutes, the lynx said "We should get some sleep. We need to hurry. We most likely won't be able to get back to camp in the next couple of days, so I want an early start." With that being said, the lynx rolled over and put his back to the fire and started to snore.

Zargos looked at Astra and nodded slowly. "Thank you, my lady, for saving my life. I will never forget this and my debt to you will never be paid. But I swear, I will protect you with my life." With that being said, the cat followed suit by climbing into his sleeping bag and fell fast asleep.

Astra sighed tiredly. Once she made sure that the boys were fast asleep, she threw off her blanket and walked over to her dry clothes. Throwing her clothes on, she took a quick walk around the perimeter of the campsite, making sure no one was there, then climbed back into her sleeping bag. The stars twinkled above in the night sky and Astra smiled to herself. It was so peaceful outside that a creature could easily forget that there was so much evil. Weariness overtook the vixen and she closed her eyes as the fire started to die off into embers.

/

Fox McCloud's nose twitched involuntarily. The aroma of the delicious food wafted into the room where he was. Against his will, Fox's stomach started to rumble and to growl. The monstrosity that was awakened in his stomach pushed Fox into consciousness. The vulpine groaned as he moved and stretched his sore neck. Finally the leader of the Star Fox team opened his eyes.

He was in a room, made of logs with a straw roof. The vulpine started to stand up but found out that his legs wouldn't obey. After closer inspection, Fox noticed that he was tied to the ground with rope. His hands were also bound together in front of him and the pole behind him was his only support. It was a wooden pole and it didn't offer Fox any comfort.

"Well, well, look who's awake!" a voice commented in the other side of the room.

Fox nodded at the sound of the voice, a small smile of contempt creeping on his face. "Hello Wolf. Look at what you did."

"Don't pin this on me McCloud!" Wolf snarled. "I didn't even want to come to here in the first place!"

"No. You wanted to leave, take the money and leave your crew member behind. Now I see what a great lupine you are!" Fox argued.

"Ha! You're the one to talk!" Wolf sneered. "At least I didn't leave someone behind to die on this planet!"

Fox stood up immediately, enraged at the comment, only to find himself face planting on the floor. He crawled back to the pole slowly and shifted his body to where he could put his back against it. The vulpine sighed. "And I regret it every day Wolf. Not a day goes by where I blame myself for her death. I should have done more."

The silence in the room was deafening. "What? No witty comeback?" Fox asked.

Wolf shrugged. "Didn't need one. I made my point."

Fox glared at the lupine for the crude remark. Ignoring the lupine that sat across from him, Fox looked around the room some more. At last, he noticed something very obvious. "Hey Wolf. Where's everybody else?"

"Dead? Gone? Maybe somewhere else? Who knows? When I woke up, it was just you and me." The lupine commented.

"Falco? Slippy? Can you hear me?" Fox called out.

No answer.

"Falco!? Slippy!?" Fox tried again louder.

The only sound was the wind, whistling through the cracks of the wooden door.

Panic and terror arose in the leader as he struggled against his bindings. The only thing he could picture was his dream. Falco dying with Slippy already dead next to him with the shadowy figure snuffing out the life of his best friend. _Where are they? I need to get out of here!_

"Falco? Slippy? Answer me!" Fox yelled.

Wolf winced. "Quit your wailing McCloud. They can't hear you."

Fox struggled against his bindings again. "Why aren't you worried?"

"Maybe it's because I don't care."

Fox stopped and stared at his enemy with disbelief. "You mean you don't care about your team? About Leon who's been with you since day one? About Panther who helped you through everything?"

Wolf snarled "Of course I care about them McCloud! But there's one thing I've learned in my line of business. You don't give your captors your weakness. What you're doing right now, you're going to get yourself and them killed!"

Fox grunted as he tried to pull his paws free from the ropes that held him down. Wolf only shook his head. "Don't bother. I've already done that. These ropes are incredibly strong. They know what they are doing."

"They?"

"Our jailers. One of them walked into the room to check on us. I gave them something to think about."

"Wolf. What did you do?"

"I head-butted him in the snout."

Even though the situation was dire and tensions were high, Fox couldn't help but laugh. "What happened next?"

"He ran off. After I beat him in a battle of wits" Wolf responded gruffly.

"You mean you just cursed at him until he left?"

"Exactly."

Silence reigned for a couple of minutes with Fox chuckling to himself as he pictured the event. Wolf could only smile softly. Finally he asked, "What are we going to do?"

Fox shook his head. "I don't know. I guess we have to wait."

Footsteps were heard as it got closer and closer to the door. The aroma that Fox smelled earlier was getting stronger and his mouth started to water. The door opened and two guards walked in, a female wolf and a badger. Between both guards, they carried two plates of delicious smelling food as they walked towards both captives. Fox stomach growled loudly as his nose quivered. To his dismay, the guards walked past both captives and sat themselves at the table across from the door. Without a word, they started to dig in.

But Wolf wasn't focused on the food. Instead his eyes danced over the slender body of the female wolf as she ate. Although it was dark in the room save for the candle on the table and the light streaming from the setting sun through the door frame, Wolf could see the piercing blue eyes from the beautiful creature that sat away from him. She wore a simple cargo pants with a purple combat shirt. Her left ear was decorated with three earrings and her silver fur shone from the candle light.

After a few minutes of watching them eat, Wolf couldn't take it anymore. He flashed a sly grin at the female wolf who was paying attention to him. "Hey darlin'. How about getting us some grub? We're starving here."

Without a word, the female lupine turned around and dug into a backpack that she carried into the room and pulled out a roll of bread. She threw it with precision accuracy and the bread hit Wolf on the nose. Wolf winked at the female lupine and picked up the roll and started to munch on it.

The female wolf stood up and grabbed another roll and gave it to Fox. Fox accepted it gratefully and started to eat. She returned to her seat and continued to eat in silence.

Finally, Fox spoke up. "What's going on? Why are we here?"

The badger turned around and focused on the vulpine. "Shut up" he ordered. "You're here until we can take you to our leader."

"And who's that?" Wolf jumped in. "The Emperor?"

At the mention of the name both guards bristled. "We don't work for the Emperor" the female wolf said. "In fact, we fight against the Emperor."

Fox perked up. "Then listen to me! We are here to fight against him also. Please, let us go and let us help!"

The female wolf shook her head. "That is not up to us. When our leader arrives, he'll decide what to do with you."

The badger leaned in and whispered to the female wolf. "He's supposed to arrive with the others yesterday! I say we kill them and get over with it. I don't trust them. Especially the blue bird."

"He's alive?" Fox interrupted, ignoring the look from Wolf.

The female wolf stopped and turned her attention to the vulpine. She slowly nodded as she finished chewing her food. "At this moment, yes. He needs to be careful though. Nearly got himself killed."

"What happened?"

Lilith only shook her head and resumed her conversation with the badger. "We've already had this conversation Remos! We can't kill them. What if they are spies? They may have information"

"All the more reason to kill them Lilith! As much as I hate to say it, I agree with Maxwell." the badger argued. "Better to have them die than have them escape."

"I hate Max." Lilith muttered. "I don't understand how he's promoted to that position!"

Remos shrugged. "His head may not be screwed on correctly, but he's a genius. If he says they need to die, then lets kill them!"

"This is stupid!" Wolf yelled. "We're not spies. Listen to the dimwit that's sitting across from me. We're fighting the Emperor!"

Lilith stood up and pulled a knife out of her pocket and in a flash pressed it against the lupine's throat. "Not another word. Understand?"

Wolf smiled. "I love it when you take control. It makes me feel helpless."

Lilith pressed the knife harder against Wolf's throat. Finally the lupine sighed "I understand."

She put the knife away and turned to Fox. The female wolf motioned towards the lupine "He needs help."

"Tell me about it." Fox agreed.

Remos, the badger stood up and checked the bindings on Wolf and Fox. Once he felt that they were tight, he nodded to Lilith and both guards packed up their belongings. Remos left the hut first and as Lilith started to leave, Wolf spoke up "If you want some action, you know where to find me."

Lilith turned to face him. "You're not worth it." With that statement, she closed the door and locked it behind her.

Wolf grinned at Fox. "I think she likes me."

Fox shook his head. "You do need help. Now, let's figure out how to get out of here."

"There's nothing McCloud. I've looked everywhere. They've stripped the room free. There's no escaping."

Fox noticed that Wolf was right. The room was empty, save for the table and the two chairs but due to being bound, the vulpine couldn't reach it.

The leader of the Star Fox team nodded. "I guess we have to wait and see."

After several minutes passed, Fox remembered something from Wolf's posture and Leon's comment on the screen. He asked, "Wolf, I saw that."

"Saw what McCloud?" Wolf growled.

"How you looked at her. What did Leon mean when he said you had love?"

"Drop it McCloud."

"Not a chance Wolf."

The leader of the Star Wolf team sighed and went silent. Finally he spoke up, his voice cracking. "It was in my younger days when Star Wolf was just starting. I did a job with my team and we ran into some trouble. While we were escaping, we were offered refuge by a family. The people that we stole from were looking for us for weeks and we stayed with the family. I got close to their daughter, Rose. Long story short, they found us and killed her."

"Wolf, I'm sorry."

"I said, drop it McCloud." Wolf grumbled. "I don't need your apologies."

Fox nodded and remained silent. Finally he rested his head against the pole and fell asleep.

Two days passed and Lilith and Remos returned every several hours to give them the same meal of bread and water while checking the binds. Every time Lilith returned, Wolf continually flashed the same grin and joked around with her. Lilith always ignored him and nearly killed him several times when the lupine went too far if Fox hadn't interfered. But each time, Lilith would leave the room without even looking at the lupine.

The fourth day arrived and with each day brought anger to Lilith and Remos. Through their conversation, Fox discerned that their leader hadn't arrived yet. Finally the afternoon of the fourth day arrived and Remos opened the door and burst in. He looked between Fox and Wolf and decided on the former. "You, you're coming with me."

The badger cut the binding that held the vulpine down onto the ground and pulled him up. Fox immediately got dizzy but wasn't given the chance to recuperate as he was shoved outside of the door. The sun blinded him for several seconds but once Fox got his bearings, he noticed that he was in a camp with huts identical as his scattered across the grounds. Animals of various kinds milled around with the majority shooting him hateful looks and cursing at him. Remos pushed different creatures out of the way and led the vulpine to an open area where different creatures were gathered. Remos stopped, turned and bound Fox's paws tightly and continued on his way. In front of the group was an otter who was yelling at the crowd before him and the crowd cheered with every statement.

Once Fox arrived at the area, the otter forced him to kneel. Waving his hands, the otter silenced the crowd. "We have here before us, our enemy! A soldier for the Emperor!

Fox's ears perked up and he looked at the otter with anger. "I've said it before! I do not work for the Emperor!"

The otter punched him. "Silence! We must show the Emperor what we do with spies! Since our esteemed leader is not here to carry out the judgement, I am duty bound to do so! And I sentence this creature, this _spy_ to death!"

Fox reeled backwards from the punch. He felt helpless and incapable of doing anything. The vulpine was so close, yet so far from achieving his goal: killing the Emperor. Fox felt terror rise up in his soul to grip his heart, but it was immediately exchanged with sadness and peace. If it was his time to die, Fox McCloud was willing to go.

 _I'm sorry Krystal. I'm sorry for everything._

The otter pulled his gun out of his hoister and held it up into the air. The crowd cheered.

 _You are my life, Krystal. You are my everything._

Fox felt the gun make contact with his forehead. He felt the hammer cock backwards.

 _I love you Krystal. I await you in death._ Fox closed his eyes as he pictured his love in his head.

/

Astra, Kix and Zargos finally made their way past the final round of trees that stood in their way. Kix smiled wearily. "There's the camp!"

Sure enough, the three friends could see the huts but it wasn't what captured their attention. It was the raucous crowd that was cheering and chattering loudly. "What's going on?" Astra wondered.

"Let's find out." Kix said.

Ignoring their weariness, the three creatures hurried past the huts to join the crowd. Once they arrive, Astra could see that the otter, Maxwell was holding a gun up in the air and someone was kneeling below him. She strained to see past the crowd and noticed that it was a male fox, lean and strong.

Kix sighed. "This is an execution. He must be a spy for the Emperor."

Astra nodded. They had to execute some soldiers who worked for the Emperor before, so this was no different. She tried to turn away, but she couldn't. Instead her eyes rested upon the vulpine, kneeling below the otter with his eyes shut. Maxwell lowered the gun and rested it on the prisoner's head and cocked the hammer. Astra could feel the spirit that she shared the body with thrashing against her. Something was important about this prisoner, but what?

Suddenly the shield in her mind broke and memories flooded in. Memories of the prisoner smiling warmly at her. The crystal prison in Dinosaur Planet. The SOS call and the crash onto the planet. But one memory lingered and that was the prisoner giving her the earring and she could feel herself rushing into for a hug. Once she did so, Astra could remember the softness of the fur, the cologne, the deep laughter, and the softness of his lips.

Astra snapped back to the present and she saw the otter place his finger on the trigger. With her entire being she yelled "STOP!"

/

"STOP!" the commanding, clear and feminine voice carried over the crowd. The crowd quickly went silent and they turned to face the creature from the back of the group. Fox dimly heard the command, but the crowd was too loud. He felt the gun move away from his head and Maxwell stepped forward. "You have returned! Just in time Kix! I was just about to execute the spy for the Emperor!"

Fox opened his eyes and moved to see who the otter was addressing. The crowd split open and a lynx stepped through. "A spy you say? I would have let you continue the execution if you found him guilty. But Astra wanted to say something."

Fox looked around for the creature that the lynx was speaking of. Finally he noticed a figure step out from the mass of creatures. The first thing he noticed was the fur. It was as white as snow and it gleamed underneath the sun. Her long tail swished rhythmically and as she walked, it was like she was gliding over air. But with each step that the vixen took, Fox felt small pain flash through his head. His mind was a hurricane, memories swilled like an ocean crashing on the shore. The leader of the Star Fox team groaned audibly as the vixen approached him. The sun continued to shine in his eyes and it was making the vulpine difficult to see her face. Finally the vixen arrived to the kneeling fox and moved her head to block the sun. The vixen pulled out a knife and cut the rope that bounded his paws.

Fox's head was down but once he felt a shadow pass over him, he started to look up. His eyes started at her feet and worked his way up the body of the dirt riddled clothes of the vixen. Once he saw her face, Fox's mind exploded. Memories washed over him as he remembered her perfume, her chuckles, her gentleness and the deep enveloping hug when he gave her the earring. Fox reeled backwards with shock, breathing heavily as he felt like his heart was going to burst. He shook his head as he kept his eyes trained on the vixen before him, not believing it.

The vixen took a step forward _I'm here Fox. You found me._

Tears filled his eyes as the telepathic message entered his mind. Fox broke down and started to cry. All the pain, the sorrow, the stress, anger were finally washed away by that one simple message. The vixen placed her paw on his check and Fox looked deeply in the turquoise colored eyes. _I'm here_ Fox thought _I will never leave you again._

 _I know you won't._

Fox started to reach out. Kix stepped forward hurriedly, but was stopped by the vixen. He leaned and kissed her. She kissed back and both creatures kissed long and deep to the surprise of the crowd. The softness of her lips confirmed all of his doubts. He finally broke free, with tears still in his eyes, and whispered into her ear as he pulled her into a long hug. "I love you Krystal."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 _Dager_

Krystal was finally at peace. The constant stress and worry was finally lifted from her shoulders as she stared lovingly at the emerald eyes of her hero. The Cerinian pilot knew that she owed the leader of the Star Fox team a huge debt that she would never repay. But for now, she would enjoy the moments with her love. Still, guilt settled into the young woman as a thought appeared in her mind _You caused all of this. You are the reason why the Star Fox team has so many problems. You are the reason for Fox's pain! For Cerninain sakes, you nearly got him killed!_

With this thought in her mind, the Cerinian telepath started to cry. Tears fell down her face like a fitful stream washing over boulders. She buried her face into the broad chest of Fox and she wept uncontrollably, her shoulders shaking. The vixen felt powerful and calloused hands wrap around her cheeks and guide her face until she was staring into the eyes of the leader of the Star Fox team. His voice was gentle as a morning breeze when he asked. "What's wrong?"

"I-I" Krystal started before she continued to sob. "I-I'm sorry!"

"For what?"

"For being dead, and.. and… nearly getting you killed!" Krystal blubbered. "I wouldn't live with myself if you were gone."

Krystal pulled away from Fox and looked down at the ground with shame. She felt a hand touch her arm and it stroked down to her own hand. "Krystal. You are important to me and I would sacrifice anything and everything to help you. It's true that when you died, I took the blame upon myself because I…" Fox paused as he took a deep breath. "I love you. I couldn't imagine life and the team without you and I'm sure," the vulpine chuckled softly "the team would agree with me. Krystal, you are alive and that's what matters right now." With that statement, she felt her being pulled into another hug by the vulpine. His strong arms wrapped around her like a blanket and she could feel her spirit become calm and comforted.

Krystal was left with awe by his words, but still could not stop her body from shaking. Silver tears fell like snowy flakes down her cheek and Krystal hurried to wipe it off. Finally she laughed softly. "I knew."

Fox sarcastically leaned in closer. "What did you say?"

Krystal laughed, a bit louder at that time. Her laughter washed over the leader of the Star Fox team like chords from a song. Just being there in person to see her, to touch her, to _feel_ her caused Fox to fall in love with her even more.

The vixen shoved the pilot softly. "You big oaf, I said that I knew!"

"And?" Fox held his breath.

The vulpine waited nervously for Krystal to answer. _Maybe the kiss was too rushed? Did I get ahead of myself? Get it together McCloud! You have something bigger going on than your love life! Maybe she doesn't even like me. Maybe I'm just being silly and she was searching for something platonic? Wait… why is Krystal looking at me like that? You're hearing me right now aren't you?_

Krystal smiled, her beam was as bright as the radiant sun that was currently shining down on the couples. Finally she leaned in closer and gave the leader a deep and meaningful kiss. Fox's heart exploded as the two mended with each other. Together, they understood each other, each joy, guilt, frustration and excitement. The two foxes unlocked lips and Krystal gave a little smile. "Does that answer your question?"

For the first time in his life, the battle hardened Ace Pilot of the Star Fox team, the hero and savior of the Lylat System, the respected among the dinosaurs of Dinosaur Planet and the unofficial Ambassador for the EarthWalker and CloudRunner tribes, the man who had seen so much chaos, frustration, death, and destruction in his lifespan was tongue tied.

"Um… er, ah… y… yesh?"

Krystal giggled at the sight of Fox McCloud's beet red face. The vulpine awkwardly scratched the back of his head and his tail swished back and forth nervously. The Cerinian telepath shook her head. "You are no good with this are you?"

Fox smiled. "I can kill without a second thought to protect my family and friends. I can fly through an army of monkies to destroy a maniacal science. But when it comes to romance? That, I fail miserably at."

The leader then took a step back and admired the vixen before him. The ace pilot could see that her fur was white and that she was heavily scarred. He loved the new color on her, but knew deep in his heart that he missed the blue fur. Fox started to speak, concern creeping into his voice. "How.."

Krystal quickly shook her head. _Not here. Not now. I don't want anyone to know._

Upon getting the message, Fox shut his mouth and slowly nodded respecting her decision. Krystal smiled and wiped away a stray tear as someone coughed politely in the background.

The couple quickly swiveled their heads at the source of the cough and Fox saw a lynx stride up to them. "I see you have met Astra before." The lynx then turned around and yelled out to the crowd "Go home, go do your duties and tend to your families! Nothing to see here!"

The crowd quickly dispersed, some muttering angrily that they wouldn't witness an execution while others discussed with shock that Astra kissed a criminal in the area! The lynx shook his head and turned and faced the vulpine. He placed a hand out and said "The name is Kix. Nice to meet you Mr…"

"McCloud. The name is Fox McCloud." The vulpine answered as he accepted the handshake.

"Fox McCloud?" Kix's eyes widened and his jaw went agape. " _The_ Fox McCloud?"

The vulpine slowly nodded as he quickly glanced at Krystal. The Cerinian telepath shook her head as she received the unheard message.

"If I may be so bold, Mr. McCloud. What are you doing here?" Kix continued.

"Do you mean here on this planet, or here in this exact spot?" Fox asked. "Because my team was darted by your people and brought here against our will."

The lynx nodded slowly. "I must apologize for that. We thought that you were the Emperor's spies and we acted accordingly. I must get the report from Deliah."

Fox smiled, understanding the leader's position. "So you're in the fight against the Emperor? I don't blame you. If I was in your place, I would probably have done the same thing."

"This is all nice and good, but this talk won't get us any closer to killing the Emperor," a voice in the back interjected. "I suggest that we discuss this more privately and come up with a plan."

The three animals turned and saw a cat walk up to the group. He gave a crooked smile to the vulpine and nodded. "Fox McCloud huh? The name is Zargos. I'd shake your hands but…"

Fox nodded, noticing the cat's physical shape. "I think we all need some rest before we talk about the Emperor." He turned to the lynx and commented, "I trust that you will free the rest of my team and give them proper sleeping arrangements?"

Kix nodded. "It'll be done. You can have one of the empty huts. I'll show you the way."

The group followed the leader of the rebellion as the lynx strode through the small community. He passed several of houses and upon seeing Lilith, he immediately ordered to free the rest of the prisoners. Lilith breathed heavily and shook her head, obviously disagreeing with the idea but complied with her leader's wishes.

Finally Kix arrived at one of the huts and commented "Zargos. This is yours. I'll make sure my people will tend to you and bring you some refreshments."

The weary cat smiled. "Thank you." He turned and slowly limped inside the small hostel, closing the door behind him.

Kix turned and led the remaining two animals who hadn't left each other's sides and pointed out the living arrangements. "Fox, you'll sleep in that one and Astra… well, you know where you live!" The lynx laughed. Both Fox and Krystal smiled and nodded their thanks.

The lynx clapped his hands together and nodded. "Right. I can tell when I'm not wanted. Sleep well!"

Fox groaned as tiredness from the day quickly overcame him. He nodded slowly. "I guess sleep does sound good."

"Can… Can I stay with you?"

Fox looked up quickly at the turquoise colored eyes. The setting sun illuminated her crystal clear eyes and it melted Fox's heart. Immediately he was tongue tied for the second day. "I-I guess if you want to?"

Krystal raised her eyebrows. "If I want to? I know I want to McCloud."

Fox chuckled softly, knowing how stupid he sounded. "Are you okay?"

There was a slight pause, then Krystal answered. "To be honest? I don't think I am. But knowing that you are at my side and that you are always there for me, it makes things better."

The vixen continued to talk, but the brown vulpine wasn't listening. Her voice was like a bell, ringing a sweet song that raised goosebumps underneath his fur. The leader of the Star Fox team moved his eyes from the scarred face down to her armored body and down to the boots on her feet. Fox smiled to himself, knowing that no matter what she looked like, he would always love her. He would always be there for her, no matter the cost and knew that even if the price was high, he would pay for it."

"So thank you so much for that. I love you Fox…. Fox?"

Fox snapped back to reality "Uh duh." The vulpine quickly nodded. "I was listening."

Krystal rolled her eyes. "You are a bad liar. I can always tell." She sighed. "I fear what the future will bring."

The leader of the Star Fox team took her hand and held it. "Krystal. The future will happen and there is nothing we can do to stop it. But I will always be at your side and I will never leave you. I love you."

Krystal nodded, knowing that his words rang true. Finally the vixen cocked her head towards the hut. "Well, are we going inside?"

"Whenever you're ready," was the reply.

The two foxes walked together, hand in hand, into the hut. The golden sun set pass the horizon, its rays washing over the green leaves of the dense jungle. Within a few moments, it disappeared completely and the moon appeared, the silver light shining down on the hut where the two lovers fell asleep in each other's arms.

/

In the deepest midst of slumber, Fox McCloud's mind wandered. In the inky blackness of his mind, the leader of the Star Fox team stood stock still. The air was cold, unbelievably so; that his fur showed signs of frost on it. Then out of the darkness, a voice came.

 _Wake up._

Fox didn't register the words as he shook his head. A wind blew, howling through the night. The cold was fiercer and it caused Fox to lose feeling in his feet. The vulpine turned around to move, but found out that he couldn't. Already, ice was starting to form around his boots, freezing the leader to the spot.

 _Please Fox! Wake up!_

The voice echoed through the recesses of Fox McCloud's mind. The ice started to climb up, threatening to freeze him if he didn't do anything. The ice crawled from his feet to his legs, then from his legs to his body. Fox found that he couldn't twist his hips and he started to struggle wildly. The ice overcame his arms then worked its way up to his neck. Before it reached his face, Fox opened his mouth, but no sound came out. The ice covered up the vulpine, freezing him in a standing position, his eyes empty and glassy, his mouth opened in a silent scream.

 _WAKE UP!_

The command echoed through his mind like a bell and Fox McCloud's woke up with a start. He clutched his chest as he panted heavily. Feeling his fur was warm and that he was wrapped around with blankets, the vulpine ensured that he was in no danger. The leader of the Star Fox team lay back down on his bed, breathing hard as he commented. "Krystal, I had the strangest dream."

There was no answer.

Fox turned his head to his left and saw that the side of the bed was empty. He sat up straighter again. "Krystal?"

 _I'm here._

The telepathic message came to Fox and he breathed easily. Her words calmed his racing heart down. _I'm outside_

Fox nodded to himself. He stood up and pulled on a shirt and made his way out of the door. The morning sun blinded the vulpine, but the pain did not compare to what hit him in the back of his head. The leader of the Star Fox team fell down with a grunt and a crash on the grassy floor. Pain flashed like lightning in his ribs as a boot made contact and Fox quickly clutched his sides as he rolled up into a ball. The kicks kept coming, each one hurting more than the last. Finally, it stopped and he felt a hand pick up his head.

The sky was clear and blue, and the air as soft as milk. The vulpine spit out some blood that was building up in his throat and he started to cough. A voice was heard in the background

"I told you Fox, that if you followed me, I would kill you and your team."

Fox stopped coughing as he heard those words. His eyes were swollen as a plum, yet the leader of the Star Fox team could see a figure in front of him. The Emperor strode up to him, made his paw into a fist and struck Fox across the jaw. The vulpine hit against the ground in pain and through his daze he saw his friends along with the Star Wolf team tied up in a line. Fox rolled on his back and using his peripherals, he could see a crying vixen standing next to a lizard.

 _Please Fox! He said he would kill all of us if I didn't tell you to come outside._

Fox painfully nodded. _It's alright. Everything will be fine._

Even the words sounded like a lie to him. The mad panther casually walked around and remarked airily "It's a beautiful day."

Fox coughed out blood again. "I'll kill you!" He snarled.

The Emperor only smiled. "Many have tried. All have failed. This will make it even sweeter. I'll have you watch as I skin her alive! But, that is not what is going to happen. No…. I have a better plan," the Emperor chuckled as he walked forward. The panther squatted down as he put his head closer to his enemy. "I'll kill your teammates first!"

With that statement, the Emperor stood up, pulled out his pistol and cocked it. He pointed it directly at Falco. The blue bird stared back down the barrel coolly. "Any last words bird?"

Falco glanced at Fox, smiled and winked. "You'll be sorry that you were ever born! Fox McCloud will not rest until he kills you. I just wish I could see that day."

The Emperor grinned. He fired the gun. Fox opened his mouth and a scream rang out.

Krystal quickly turned her face away, her tears staining her face. The Emperor kicked the dead body of Fox's best friend and remarked "Take him away and make an example of him!"

Commander Ragas barked an order and three lizards jumped to attention. They ran and picked up Falco's lifeless body and carried him away. Fox felt like his soul was being ripped from his body and he wished this nightmare would end. The Emperor glanced at his torturous victim and smiled at the pain he was causing. He enjoyed seeing Fox suffer. The panther king walked to the next victim, which was Slippy. Without a word, he shot the toad and Fox's mechanical friend fell without a sound.

A cry was ripped from Krystal as she flinched at the sound of the gunshot. She struggled against the hard grip of Commander Ragas and attempted to rush forward. The Commander held her with one paw and finally moved his tail, in which it wrapped around the neck of the vixen.

A lizard kicked Fox hard in the stomach and the vulpine coughed hard. His bloodshot eyes looked ahead at the toad's form then moved to the Emperor. "I'll kill you!" he screamed. "Do you hear me? I'll kill you!"

The Emperor sighed. "Oh Foxy, Foxy, Foxy… You just don't get it! You _can't_ kill me! But I can kill your love!"

With one sudden motion, the mad panther turned, aimed and fired the gun at the vixen. Everything happened in slow motion; the bullet traveling through the air, Fox screaming, Krystal crying; then everything froze.

Suddenly Fox found himself standing upright and all pain and anguish from his body was gone. The Emperor, Commander Ragas, Krystal and even the dead Slippy all disappeared. Only Fox was surrounded by the huts and the sun shining down on him. A blue orb appeared out of the ground and swirled around the astonished leader of the Star Fox team. It circled around his head several times then shot back towards the ground, several feet in front of him. Out of the ground arose a figure, still colored blue. Fox shielded his eyes as the figure glowed as bright as the radiant sun.

"Look at me."

Fox's training kicked in and he dropped down to the ground, rolled and pulled out his weapon from his hip and attempted to fire. To his astonishment, he couldn't and the vulpine looked down at the weapon and saw that it was changed into a carrot!

The figure chuckled and said. "Fox McCloud. Always shooting first, and asking questions later."

Fox looked back at the figure and gasped. It was Krystal. The same body, the same snowy fur, and the same scars. Then the vulpine looked closer and noticed that it was not Krystal at all. Instead of the turquoise colored eyes that he was so accustomed to, it was gold.

"Who are you? And how do you know my name?" the mystified fox asked.

"My name is Kirowume. The rebellion calls me Astra. I am the last Guardian of this planet. I am what you people call a goddess, but I consider myself a Spirit and I want to help you in the fight against the Emperor."

"Why?"

Astra rolled her eyes. "I don't see what Krystal sees in you. You're so dimwitted. To save the planet of course!"

"Um, yes. But, you still haven't answered one of my questions. How do you know me?"

"The story is for Krystal to explain, but as I explored her mind, she threw up a shield. She is very powerful in the arts of magic. But I got one image and a name. That was you, Fox McCloud. But I come to you with a warning."

"A warning?"

"Are you deaf? Yes! A warning!" Astra yelled exasperated. Her figure started to glow with frustration and anger. Fox quickly shielded his eyes but then the glowing dissipated. Astra continued, "You need to let me retake control of Krystal."

"Retake control? I don't know what you mean, but that'll never happen!" Fox argued.

"If you don't then all of this will happen." Astra snapped her fingers and the scene from before reappeared. Slippy dead, the Emperor shooting at Krystal, and Fox saw himself on the ground screaming. "With my spirit in Krystal, we can stand a chance of defeating the Emperor."

Fox looked around and looked back at the spirit. He shook his head and sighed. "There is one thing I learned from my father before he passed away was this: The future is uncertain. It is always changing and I know that we can beat the Emperor while saving everyone without your help!"

"And there is your flaw. You're too loyal to your friends. You let emotions cloud your judgements. You fail to see the big picture."

"Oh, I see the big picture! My method is just different! I don't need your help!"

Astra looked troubled. "This is unwise."

Fox smirked. "Unwise? This is my choice and I am making it. I just got Krystal back and I want to be with her and not with some… spirit possessing her! You shouldn't have let this happen in the first place!"

"You are going too far," Astra warned, "I saved Krystal and I am more powerful than even her. It would be smart to have me as a friend."

"I made my choice."

"So be it." Astra sighed. "But remember, every choice has a consequence. If you come seeking for my help, I may not be there to provide it to you."

With that statement, Astra glowed then disappeared and the scene happened. The bullet smashed into Krystal's head and she snapped backwards. The vixen fell down on the ground and Fox felt his heart crawl up to his throat. _This is just a dream. You'll wake up soon McCloud._

But the vulpine couldn't shake the feeling that it was real. The leader of the Star Fox team slowly walked up to the dead vixen and kneeled down. He slowly placed a paw on her cheek and found that it was freezing cold. Fox let a sob escape as he picked up Krystal and hugged her lifeless form to his body, willing to feel a heartbeat. Then he turned his eyes to the skies and let out a long scream, as he snapped.

/

Fox's eyes snapped open and he bolted upright on his bed, clutching his neck. His heart was racing and his mouth dry. The freezing sensation lingered from his dream, as Astra's warning echoed through his head; _Every choice has a consequence_. The morning sun peeked above the horizon, its rays shining through the cracks in the door. Even though the sun wasn't fully in the sky yet, Fox could tell that it was going to be a very hot day.

Krystal entered the room holding a tray. Fox looked at her and saw that she was wearing the same clothes from yesterday. But even Fox had to admit, that despite the circumstances, Krystal still looked very good. Underneath the dirty clothes, her fur shone like the morning's dawn. Her turquoise eyes sparkled like the ocean. Her neatly combed tail was held together by three tail cuffs and her sweet voice brightened the room as she spoke "I brought you some breakfast."

Fox smiled and started to stand up. Forgetting that he didn't have a shirt on, he went around the bed to hug the vixen. On his way to her, Krystal caught her own breath. After months of being away from the Star Fox team and the trials she had gone through, she had forgotten what the leader looked like. His broad chest was full of muscle and sinew. Krystal was sure that if she picked up a stone and threw it at his body, the stone would break. Fox's emerald eyes hypnotized her, as it felt like the two orbs were searching into her soul, attempting to find every secret. The vixen suddenly felt very vulnerable at the presence of Fox McCloud. Krystal smiled to herself _He would make a good husband_ , she thought.

Suddenly, the Cerinian telepath found herself in a different place. She gasped and looked around in astonishment. The room she was in had pots and pans hanging off the walls on hooks and when she turned around, she was surprised to see a sink, and a dishwasher. The vixen slowly walked away from the kitchen and into the living room and gasped. The room was already furnished. _Someone's living here. But who and how did I get here?_

Inside the living room were two green couches with a glass coffee table in the middle. Beside the couch was a table, with some coasters on it and a picture. Silently, Krystal padded her way towards the table to pick up the picture. Once she did, the vixen nearly dropped it with surprise. It was a picture of _her_ wedding and there she was standing, in front of Fox McCloud. Krystal was wearing a beautiful white wedding dress and Fox was in a suit with a blue tie. In the picture, Krystal was laughing out loud in front of the picture as Fox was hugging her from behind, attempting to kiss her neck. _This is weird. We've only kissed. How are we married?_

The vixen turned and looked across the house and saw stairs from the foyer. She made her way to it and looked up. The stairs only ended on the floor above her and Krystal was determined to figure out how she was there. The stairs started on the floor then it made its' way up to the second floor. There was a wall next to the stairs and on the wall were more pictures. The first picture Krystal saw was of her wedding again. There was Fox in his suit and behind him were Falco, Slippy, Peppy, Bill Grey, and… _Wait, is that Wolf?_

Sure enough, the lupine was dressed in a suit and standing behind the dog. His smile looked more like a grimace as it seemed like he wanted to be gone. Next to Fox was Krystal with her own party of Fara, Kat, and Amanda toad.

The Cerinian telepath continued her way up and the next picture on the wall caught her breath. It was her and Fox laying on a picnic blanket. Fox's head was resting on his left arm as he gave a sideways smile to the camera. His mischievous eyes were looking at the camera and it caught Krystal's laugh. Suddenly the memory went back to her as clear as day. Fox had made a joke right as the camera snapped and Krystal was laughing extremely hard. The vixen loved that picture because it was the day that Fox McCloud had proposed to her.

The last picture was more astonishing. It was a picture of Fox and Krystal kissing in front a huge oak tree. The golden sun radiated the leaves, showering the couple in green. But on top of Fox's shoulders was a young brown fox with turquoise eyes. He was flinching away and trying to not see his parents kiss as one eye closed, but the other was still open. His name rushed through her mind like a wind. _James McCloud. My son._

Krystal shuddered as she reached the top. _Why am I here?_ The vixen noticed that there were four doors altogether on the floor. The first door she checked was just a storage closet, full of cleaning supplies and a vacuum. The second door was a rectangular room which was the bathroom. As she opened it, the vixen noticed that there was a counter with a sink and a giant mirror on the right side. Next to the counter was a trash can, and a toilet. Across from her was the shower and Krystal laughed softly to herself. The shower curtain was a squadron of Arwings fighting enemies in battle. But upon closer inspection, Krystal was surprised to see that she could make out their pilots. In the lead was Fox McCloud, his face a contortion of focus and determination. Next to Fox's plane was Falco, laughing as he fought. Below Falco, with his nose angled upwards, was Slippy and finally to the other side of Fox was Krystal, her turquoise eyes shining the brightest.

The Cerinian telepath turned around and left the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Across from her was another door and Krystal opened it. Inside was a square room with a bed pressed up against the wall across from her. The ground was littered with clothes and toys. She reached down and picked one up and saw that it was a wooden Arwing, a little bit bigger than her hand. Suddenly she could see in her mind's eye, a young brown fox laughing with the toy Arwing, and making _pew pew_ noises as he shot down imaginary enemies. Krystal shook her head and placed the toy back down on the ground as she made her way to a dresser that was next to the bed. On top of the dresser was a picture. It consisted of Krystal hugging Fox's side while Fox was balancing a young brown fox on one of his shoulders. _James_ Krystal automatically thought. They were smiling hugely and James was holding the same toy Arwing that Krystal was holding. Next to the picture was a model of the Great Fox, very detailed and carved out of wood. Krystal gingerly picked up the model and inspected it, remarking to herself that it was a beautiful piece. She flipped the model around and noticed writing on it.

 _James,_

 _I am proud of you. Work hard, believe in yourself and you will do great things. I love you very much._

 _Love,_

 _Dad_

Tears sprung to her eyes as joy entered her entire body. She didn't realize she wanted this life badly. Krystal hurriedly placed the model back on the dresser and used her sleeve to wipe her eyes. The vixen left the room and closed the door and made her way to the last door. She opened the door and saw that it was another bedroom. The head of the bed was against the wall with two nightstands next to it. On one was an alarm clock, a stack of books and a lamp. The other consisted of fashion magazines, a picture and a lamp. The bed was nicely made and the floor was clean. Krystal made her way to the second nightstand and got ready to pick up the picture. Once she did, the picture was a snapshot of her and Fox from the behind. They were sitting on a bench and one of Fox's arms were around her shoulder as Krystal's head was resting on his chest. The sun was setting and the orange glow provided a perfect backdrop. _This is so perfect._ The vixen thought.

Suddenly voices were heard from the outside. Krystal quickly placed the picture down on the nightstand and hurried back downstairs. She had noticed a sliding glass door in the living room that presumably led to the back yard. The vixen ran to the door and immediately looked through. Two figures were making their way from a fence that they were working on. One person was taller, bigger and more muscular. He was wearing white shirt which was stained with sweat, and jeans. He was holding a hammer with one hand on his shoulder and in his other hand was a red toolbox. He was laughing with someone else. That figure was smaller, and had incredibly bright turquoise colored eyes. Once Krystal saw who it was, she threw the door open and ran to them, and wrapped her arms around the first person she saw.

"Woah… woah Krystal!" his deep voice washed over her as he got the brunt of the hug. "Is everything okay?"

Krystal looked in the emerald eyes and nodded happily. "Everything is wonderful Fox!"

"Mom! We finally finished that fence!" a younger voice spoke up.

Krystal looked at the side of Fox and saw her son. At the immediate sight of him, Krystal caught her breath. Aside from having her eyes, everything about him was similar to Fox. From the way he stood, to the twitching brown ears, the mischievous smile, and his whishing tail. The vixen leaned down, picked up the young tod and wrapped him around in a bear hug. For the umpteenth time, tears filled her eyes as she felt the bond between her and James. _I love you very much Jimmy_.

At the sound of his nickname, Jimmy smiled. _I love you too Momma!_ Upon receiving the telepathic message, Krystal shuddered with joy. Then another message came: _I'm sorry Mom, but you seem… different today. Are you okay?_

Krystal nodded, laughing softly to herself. Apparently, James did not just inherit her eyes, but her gift as well! A force probed deeper into her emotions as James dug to figure out the problem. Finally the force disappeared as Krystal clouded her thoughts. _Now James, what did I say about privacy?_

 _But Mom! You do it to me all the time!_ The tod protested.

 _Yes, but I am your mother. It's my job to know what you are up to at all times! I care for you!_

James rolled his eyes and giggled softly. "But I'm getting powerful every day! You'll have to teach me soon."

Krystal felt pride for her son. It was true. Even at his age, he was already advancing faster along than Krystal when she was his age. She nodded slowly. _I'll start training you soon. But the first rule is that you must never, never use this for evil. This is a gift and it must be used for good. Promise me?_

James gasped with excitement. "I promise Mom!"

Finally, the vixen put her son down and turned her attention back to the vulpine. She looked back at the fence and commented. "So I see you finally finished!"

Fox groaned. "Finally! Now Corneria won't be all over us about 'clearly marking our property lines'."

"I'm hungry Momma. Can you make us some lunch?" James spoke.

Krystal looked down at James and nodded, smiling. "Of course I can! I can't have two of my men going hungry after working on that fence all morning, now can I?"

Fox smiled, leaned in and pecked her on the cheek. "No you can't. Also, you've been warned. We are starving!" He looked at his son and saw that he was nodding also. "James, why don't you go clean up? Take a shower! I can smell you from here!"

"Okay Dad!"

Krystal watched James run across the yard and she shook her head with astonishment. _He looks so much like his father._ Once the young tod made his way into the house and slammed the glass door, Krystal turned her attention to the vulpine. Fox wrapped his arms around her and Krystal felt like her heart was about to burst with joy. She loved her life here and she didn't want to leave.

Suddenly the sky darkened, time froze and Fox disappeared. A glowing appeared in the horizon and got closer. The glowing disappeared and Krystal saw a familiar person. "Astra." She commented.

"Krystal."

"What are you doing here?"

Astra countered that question with another question. "What do you think of this life?"

"This life here?" Krystal asked as she gestured around. "I… I love it. It's everything I ever wanted."

"Well, what if I could tell you that this is your _future_ Krystal?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, this will happen. I have foreseen it. All you have to do is let me take back control."

"Of my body? And not be with Fox? I'm sorry, but I… I can't."

Astra stepped forward, her paws out, a sign of pleading. "Please listen to me Krystal. The Emperor is powerful. You, Fox, the rebellion and even Star Wolf won't stand a chance against his rage. The only way to defeat him is to let me lead. If you don't. you-" Astra immediately stopped.

"I what?" Krystal pushed.

The spirit said nothing, which enraged the vixen. "I _what?"_

"You will die."

The news washed over Krystal and she looked down with surprise. _That can't be. I've come so far._

Astra nodded slowly, reading her mind. "Krystal, I'm sorry but I have foreseen your actual death and it will be in the battle against the Emperor."

Krystal shook her head. "No. I won't let that happen." Tears sprung into her eyes as her voice quivered. "I won't let you retake control of my own body. I have seen what you did to me. You killed without a second thought. You feel no remorse, but only satisfaction from killing your enemies. Where is your mercy?"

Astra's eyes hardened as she started to glow with power. "Foolish girl! This is war! You don't show mercy to your enemies!"

Krystal was resolute on her stance. "You should! You don't know if they are blindly following orders or if they follow out of fear! You need to give them a second chance. They _deserve_ second chances! I'm sorry, but my answer is no."

"Even if it means your death?" Astra's voice became surprisingly soft. "You said it yourself that you love this life."

"Better to die with compassion than to die as a killing machine."

Astra slowly nodded, sadness creeping in her voice. "So be it. I see you have made your decision. I can't take over your body with force, but you have to be willing to allow me. I will be watching and I will be waiting. If you change your mind, just say these words. "I accept you Astra," and I will be there."

Krystal nodded, understanding the terms, but Astra wasn't finished yet.

"But be warned. Every choice has a consequence. I already told this to Fox McCloud."

At that statement, Krystal became surprised. "Wait, you talked to Fox? When?"

But Astra was already glowing. "Goodbye and good luck! Remember, every choice has a consequence!"

The glowing disappeared and Krystal was left behind, still hugging Fox McCloud in the backyard. Her tired eyes looked up at the emerald eyes as Fox asked "Are you okay?"

This time the vixen shook her head as she looked back at the house. She could hear James singing in the shower through the open bathroom window. Sadness and uncertainty crept into her as she hugged her body, wishing she could just disappear. Fox walked up behind her and hugged her. "Whatever it is, we will get through it. Together."

/

 _Together._

That word echoed through her mind as she felt someone clutch her arm. It was Fox looking at her with concern. Krystal found that she was back in the room in the present day. Across from her was Fox, walking shirtless and holding her arm, looking at her with concern. The vixen dropped the tray and it clattered against the ground, eggs, bacon, toast and orange juice went everywhere. The sound of glass shattering snapped her out of her stupor and she looked down with surprise. "I-I'm sorry." She stammered.

"Never mind that. What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost." Fox asked concerned.

Krystal looked back at her hero. "I-I" she started. Then she burst into tears and buried her face in the warm fur of the leader. "I'm just tired of fighting all the time!"

The vixen felt a hand stroke the back of her head as Fox's soothing voice echoed throughout the room. "Shh… It's alright. Everything will be fine. Hey, look at me."

Both hands guided her face until she was staring deeply in the eyes of Fox. His two hands pushed her hair behind her ears as he spoke "Whatever it is, we will get through it, like we always do. Together."

 _Together._

Krystal quickly pushed herself away. "I'm sorry, I-I can't" She quickly turned around and fled the room, ignoring "Krystal!" The vixen ran out of the hut and passed the milling people who stared at her with confusion and surprise. She ran pass Kix who was pulling water out of the well and into the forest. She ran and ran until she couldn't run anymore. The vixen crashed against an oak tree and placed her back against it, breathing heavily and crying.

It was quiet, save for the occasional rustling of the leaves and the sound of Krystal sniffling. Fear slowly made her way into her heart as she fought the inner battle. _Give up control and kill without a conscious or die?_ It was this thought that plagued her mind for several hours as she huddled up against the tree. She found herself wishing that she had died in the crash, to save Fox any further sorrow and pain.

A twig snapped behind her and Krystal's ears perked up. She realized that she was in unfamiliar territory and berated herself. _You stupid fox! You shouldn't let your emotions control your actions! Not when you are in a hostile world!_

She picked up a large stick that was next to her and stood up. The oak tree gave her a lot of cover, but she couldn't see who was coming. Another twig broke, but this time it was closer and Krystal gripped the stick harder. She saw a boot from the corner of her eye, jumped away from the tree and swung with all of her might.

The figure saw it coming and nimbly rolled out of the way. "Woah, Krystal! It's just me!" Fox said as he put up his paws in a _stop_ sign. "I really would rather not to be killed by a branch!"

Krystal laughed and she started to cry. Through her blubbering, Fox managed to make out "How did you find me?"

Fox shrugged nonchalantly. "I used my tracking skills and followed your trail. You've left quite a path through the forest."

"What Fox means to say was that he contacted me and I sent him your location. Tracking skills? Ha! Fox can't even track a raccoon if it was in the same room as him!"

Fox rolled his eyes and opened his comms and a hologram of Peppy appeared. "I see you've been overhearing us Peppy. I'll have you know that I _can_ track!"

Peppy snorted. "Keep telling yourself that. Now let me see Krystal."

Fox nodded and turned around to put Krystal into view. Once seeing her, Peppy whooped with delight. "It's so good to see you again Krystal. I've missed you."

Krystal nodded, smiling through tears. "I've missed you too Peppy." She turned and looked at Fox. With that look, Peppy immediately got the message. "Alright, Fox, keep me updated! I expect to hear from you every three hours!"

"I can take care of myself!"

"And you did a _wonderful_ job taking care of yourself! Let us recap the events shall we?'

"I'd rather not."

Peppy ignored the vulpine as he started to count on his fingers. "Lets see. You've gotten hit by a dart after exposing yourself to the _whole world_ tramping through the forest. You were locked in a room and only fed bread and water. What am I forgetting? Oh yeah. _You also nearly got yourself killed!_ " Peppy yelled out the last statement.

Next to Fox, Krystal started to giggle softly as Peppy continued. "So I expect to hear from you every three hours!"

Fox sighed and rolled his eyes. "Okay Dad. I'll do as you ask."

Peppy winked. "That's the spirit! Peppy out!"

The hologram disappeared and Fox gave out a tired sigh. He put the communication device back on his belt and looked at the vixen. "Krystal, what happened?"

"I- I just needed to be alone."

"Well, you scared me to death! Even Kix was ready to call upon the army to search for you! I managed to convince him not to. Please. What's wrong?"

Krystal fidgeted with her hands. "This may sound completely insane, but I-I kinda went to the future." The vixen then sat down and explained the whole story to the vulpine who was pacing back and forth. But once she reached the part about the picture on the living room table, he stopped abruptly. The immediate stop of the pacing caused Krystal to pause, thinking that Fox had something to say but with a wave by Fox's hand, she continued the story. When Krystal explained the pictures on the wall, Fox's mouth opened wider and wider and he gave a small gasp when she explained the last picture. Finally he said, "We will have a child together?"

Krystal nodded. "His name is James."

"After my father?"

Krystal silently nodded. When she noticed that Fox had nothing else to say, she continue on her story. She explained the bathroom, James' bedroom and the master bedroom all the way to her encounter with Astra. At the Spirit's name, Krystal noticed that Fox's demeanor changed, as his eyes furrowed with anger and his hands clenched. Finally she ended with "She told me that she spoke with you."

Fox sighed and nodded. "It happened when I was asleep. I had a dream." The vulpine then hesitantly told the whole story. At the mention of her death, Krystal closed her eyes and started to weep again.

Fox inched closer and started to hug her. "But I won't let that happen again. I won't let you die."

"But you don't understand! If I do not give her control, then I'll die!"

"She said that?"

Krystal nodded. "She also said that the future I saw could happen. But that is only if I give her control. But I am too afraid to."

Fox's voice was calm and caring as it put Krystal at ease. "Why?"

"Because when she was in me… I-I did things, horrible things. Things I would never live with myself again."

Fox nodded with empathy. "Come here. I promise you that I will never leave your side. I love you Krystal and you mean everything to me. I love you more than life itself and I will do everything in my power to keep you safe."

Krystal moved into his open arms against the oak tree and she leaned against his chest, feeling the soft _thump_ of his heart beat. The strong arms wrapped around her and she started to calm down. Her restless spirit became more peaceful underneath the comfort of Fox's arms and the warm sun. The cool wind blew, ruffling her fur and the green leaves rustled within the wind. Finally, Krystal fell asleep against the chest of her savior, and Fox did not move from that spot until the next morning.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

 _Dager_

The Emperor kept his focus on his dinner when he heard the door open. The mad panther daintily bit into the meat and chewed it slowly. His one eye looked up and he saw a lizard guard, quaking in his place. At his permission, the guard inched closer and closer to the panther until he was within a paws reach. Silence reigned the dining room, as the candles illuminated the expensive silverware. The fireplace behind the Emperor roared with power, giving out heat and warming the cool room. The glow from the flames was cast upon a panting on the wall next to the dining table. The Emperor, the Queen and a young Panther Caruso stood staring emotionlessly with a forest as a back drop. Finally, the lizard guard couldn't take it anymore and he hissed, "My lord…"

A paw shot up, silencing the lizard. The Emperor returned his gaze back to his dinner on the table. He cut off another piece of meat and started to chew on it thoughtfully. The juice from the meat danced on his taste-buds and some of it dribbled down his chin. The mad panther picked up the napkin, wiped the runoff and commented. "This is delicious. You can really taste the leanness and the tenderness of this meat."

The lizard guard was silent, unsure if the Emperor was addressing him. Then he stepped back with fear as one eye darted towards him. "I was talking to you."

"Sorry my lord. I-I agree with you sire."

The Emperor nodded. "Good." He took another piece and bit into it. "Why do we hunt?"

"My lord?"

"I asked you a question. Why do we hunt?"

"For enjoyment sire?"

The Emperor banged on the table with glee. "Exactly. Nothing gives me the thrill of the chase than to search out for your prey and snuff their life out! Hunting gives us character. It instills a sense of… comradeship, courage, and it gives you practice. People are always afraid to take their first kill, but once you get the hang of it, it comes very easily." The panther stood up and walked to the fireplace and warmed his hands. After several minutes of silence, he turned and looked at the lizard. "Why are you here?"

"My lord, I come with news."

"And?"

"And…and, he has been found." The lizard hissed with fear. "Babbling something about a white vixen and a man named… McCloud?."

The Emperor turned his attention to the fire. The orange glow brightened his already angry eye. The mad panther took a deep breath and smiled. The smile put a sense of uneasiness in the lizard as the Emperor commented, "I guess they are on the hunt and it would seem that for the first time in my life" he paused as he walked closer to the dining table, "I am the prey."

Confusion was evident on the lizard's face. "My lord? What do you mean?"

The panther king roared with anger and with a swipe of the paw flung the plate off the dining table. The expensive piece shattered easily against the stony floor and the lizard flinched against the sound. His one eye turned to the guard as the panther exploded. "You come into my dining room when I specifically said that I won't be disturbed during meal times? You also have the audacity to mention Fox McCloud in _my_ face? Now get out of here before I have you flogged and executed!"

The hot breath from the Emperor washed over the guard and the lizard lost his bravery. He was surprised by the mood change, hastily bowed, turned around and started to flee towards the door. As soon as he placed his claw on the door knob, he heard a _whizzing_ noise and pain flashed through his body. The lizard attempted to duck behind the door, but found that he was unable to. The poor guard looked at his claw with shock and saw that a butter knife was embedded into the claw and the force had lodged it, with his claw, into the wooden door.

The Emperor was breathing heavily with anger. Finally, the mad panther sat down on the table, fully aware of the lizard's moaning. "If you don't stop moaning, I'll give you something to moan about!"

The command terrified the lizard into silence and the Emperor resumed eating what was left of his dinner. Once he had finished, he rang a bell and a group of slaves came into the dining room to clean up the mess and the table. Once the slaves emptied out, the Emperor closed his eyes, resting for a moment.

A knock sounded at the door and the Emperor woke up. He nodded at the lizard, who was still pinned at the door, to open it and with a squeak, the door opened. Commander Ragas walked inside the dining room, took a glance at the lizard, and walked to the Emperor. The lizard Commander's tail was attired with a barbed wire, but it flickered nervously. He arrived at the Emperor's side and spoke "You keep this up, we are going to run out of men soon."

The Emperor waved the comment away. "We have plenty of men to spare. What report do you bring Commander?"

The Commander nodded nervously. "My lord, I sent this lizard to explain the news to you. You'll have to meet with him. He is in the room."

"Is he still alive?"

"Just barely."

"Good, good. Is it prepared?"

The Commander smiled evilly. "Already done, my lord." With that statement, the lizard commander turned around on his heels and walked to the door. He looked back at the guard, rolled his eyes and left.

The Emperor remained sitting on his chair, a paw supporting his chin. The mad panther laughed softly to himself. _It would seem that the hunter, is now the hunted._

/

Dawn had barely broken as Fox McCloud and Krystal left the premises of the forest. They walked up to the well, and wordlessly Fox started to fish some water out. He offered some to Krystal and the vixen accepted gratefully. She drunk deeply, feeling the refreshing liquid wash the dryness of her throat. Suddenly, she started to cough. A powerful paw hit against her back repeatedly until she spat some water out. Fox snickered softly to himself, "You need to slow down."

Between coughs, Krystal nodded. "I was getting ahead of myself." She sighed and sat down on the rim of the well. The vixen watched the orange glow at the edge of the horizon as the sun climbed up into the sky with each minute. The vulpine stood next her silently, enjoying the same view that she was seeing. Krystal reached out with her mind, exploring the depths of Fox McCloud, searching for what was bothering him, while shielding him from her presence. Suddenly she caught snippets of the Emperor shooting Falco, Slippy and finally herself. She gasped softly and caught her breath. Her eyes filled with water as she fought to restrain from crying. _I don't understand how he can live with this. How can he put on a brave face, yet have to see so much? How can he continue to love me, when I am so different? Astra has left a mark on me._

A sound alerted Fox and he looked away from the rising sun. The leader of the Star Fox team reached down and softly wiped away a tear from his girlfriend's face. He went around and stood in front of her, shielding her from the sun's light. Wordlessly, he leaned down and kissed her on the head. _You're mine, and my own. I want to be the last person you see when you go to sleep and the first one to see when you awake. I want to be with you in the good times and the bad because I know that we can handle this together._

"But, I'm different." Krystal said out loud. "I-I'm not the same anymore. Physically and mentally. I still feel guilty."

Fox smiled. "If you were red, black, blue or even white, I would love you still the same. If you were scarred or not, I would still love you the same." The vulpine took a finger and traced it along the scars on her face and her ear. "These just make you stronger and more beautiful, and Krystal? I understand that you feel guilty, but that is all in the past now. Let's pave the path towards our future together. I want _that_ future."

Krystal looked up with surprise. "Really? Even after we've been through?"

"Really."

Passion overtook the vixen and she grabbed the vulpine and kissed him deeply. At the moment, she finally felt free. Although she was at peace when she found Fox and was freed from Astra's control, she still wrestled with self-doubt and loathing. But Fox had put all of those doubts to rest. The sun warmed the couple as they continued to kiss each other. Krystal giggled as Fox broke free and started to work on her neck. Finally, he backed off and said, "We, uh, should keep this a secret. I don't want the team to know just yet. We are on a mission and I don't want this to jeopardize it. We'll talk when all of this is done. Do we have a deal?"

Krystal explored the mind of the vulpine and found out that the words were true and that there were no hidden meaning behind it. "Deal."

A third voice called out. "Deal!"

The couple jumped, startled and Krystal nearly fell into the well, if it weren't for the quick response of Fox. The vulpine pulled her away and both of them swiveled to look at the person. Falco Lombardi was leaning against a tree smirking. "Oh, don't stop on _my_ account please. Keep doing whatever you were doing."

Krystal laughed at the sight of Fox's red face. "How long were you there?"

"Long enough. I saw you were coming from the watchtower and I wanted to greet you myself. I guess Fox already beat me to it."

"Falco…" Fox warned.

"Don't worry McCloud. I know she is your lady and I have no intention at all. Although, it would be nice to have the same welcome."

Krystal giggled as the couple walked over to meet the blue bird. She leaned in and kissed the pilot on the cheek. "That's all you're going to get from me."

Falco beamed and hugged her tightly. "How are you doing?"

"Just happy to be alive. Kix has taken such a good care of me"

"In what way?" Falco asked smiling.

"Falco!" Krystal laughed softly while punching the pilot, "There was one thing I didn't miss and that was your dirty mind."

Falco rolled his eyes, "Whatever you say. You don't have to admit it, but I know you do like it." He winked slyly. Falco then stepped back and looked at both of them. "Where's Dylan?"

Fox and Krystal looked at each other, then they glanced back at Falco. "Who?" Fox asked quizzically.

Falco threw out his hands with exasperation. "When you rushed off into the forest, you forgot to tell Kix where you were headed. Then when you didn't come back, Kix sent one of his best scouts, a cheetah named Dylan. He was going to bring you back. Where is he?"

"I-I'm sorry, but we didn't see him. We must have missed him." Krystal stammered.

Falco shook his head, clearly worried. "This is bad. We need to tell Kix right away. By the way, he told me to collect you guys. Something about war council."

"This early?" Fox asked.

"You know what they say… The early bird gets the worm… Which is just a horrible stereotype. I absolutely _detest_ worms! Oh well, but at least they'll serve breakfast there!"

Krystal nodded and started to lead the way towards the camp. Falco and Fox walked slower together. After couple of seconds of silence Falco nudged Fox. "She looks different."

Fox shrugged. "She _is_ different. I don't know how you get through an experience like that and remain the same."

"I understand that. How did she survive? I mean, we all saw the wreckage."

"She explained part of the story to me already. But to respect her, it's not for me to tell. You'll have to hear it from her."

Falco nodded, understanding. The two friends continued to walk, then Fox spoke in an attempt to clear the air, "By the way, I heard you tried to escape. What happened?"

"Oh you know, I used the old 'I am Falco, the star pilot of the Star Fox team' charm."

Fox rolled his eyes. "The star pilot of the Star Fox team? Now you're just milking it."

"Hey, it nearly worked too. But then Lilith came along and had to put me out."

"She punched you?"

Falco nodded "How did you think I got this cut on my cheek. It wasn't certainly from the pole that I was tied up to."

Fox laughed at the picture of the female lupine laying Falco out with one punch. Falco rolled his eyes at his friend's merriment and the best friends continued on their way. Krystal led them through a maze of huts and by the area where Fox was nearly executed. Next to it was a huge hut, made of wood, leaves and straw. Smoke was billowing out of the chimney and the delicious aroma of cooked food wafted from the house. Kix was already standing outside, obviously waiting for the party. Falco ducked inside the hut and the lynx looked at the couple. Finally he commented "Is everyone okay?"

The vulpine and the vixen simultaneously nodded. With that, Kix continued, "You had me worried when you rushed off like that Astra. Then when you went after her? That is just reckless behavior! You shouldn't have done that in an already hostile world! That's why I sent Dylan after you. Where is he?"

Fox started to stammer, "W-we didn't see him. We never saw him."

The news hit the lynx like a hammer. He shook his head with fear and worry as he berated himself for making a stupid decision. Guilt settled in the rebellion leader as he thought about all the people he lost. Delios, his wife, his daughter and even good soldiers that helped in the fight against the Emperor. The lynx sighed wearily and shook his head again. Finally, Krystal opened the door and led them in. Inside was a huge circular wooden table with people already sitting at it. Kix walked to his own chair and in a clockwise circle was Zargos, the Star Wolf team and finally Star Fox with Krystal sitting to the right of the leader of the rebellion.

At the sound of the door opening, Slippy turned around and saw the vixen walk in. He gave out a croak of delight and stood up immediately. The toad launched himself from the chair, and sailed through the air and bowled into the vixen, both of them crashing into the ground. Slippy's short hands were wrapped around Krystal's neck as he squeezed tightly and croaking "Don't you ever do that again! You hear me? Never do that ever again!"

Krystal gasped, fighting for breath. "I promise Slippy! Now, can you please let me go?"

Slippy nodded and let go of the vixen. Giving a nod of apology to Fox, the toad quickly retook his seat. Wolf O'Donnell nodded his acknowledgement at the vixen. Leon Powalski rolled his eyes, clearly frustrated with the fact that he was dragged along onto the mission. Only Panther didn't notice Krystal's appearance and once he did, he didn't act.

Falco, Fox and Krystal took their seats respectively. Once everyone was sitting down, Kix start to speak, "I have gathered you all here today to discuss a common enemy. The Emperor." The lynx looked around and saw nodding at the table before continuing "I feel that all of you bring different aspects to the table and if we work together, we could win. Only when the Emperor is dead, will this planet finally know peace."

"Well, let's get to it then" Wolf snarled. "What are we waiting for? Let's just call the Great Fox and have the old hare shoot the whole fort to smithereens."

Zargos shook his head. "You are acting in haste. The Emperor has more men than we do. If we go without a plan, we'd all be slaughtered. Besides if this castle can be blown up, then surely it will kill the slaves as well. "

Wolf shrugged nonchalantly. "It's the cost of war."

Zargos quickly stood up. "I won't stand for this!"

Kix quickly put a restraining hand on the cat's arm. "Please friend. Let's talk about this with civility."

Zargos glanced at the lupine with anger and sat back down. He took a deep breath and said, "The slaves there rescued my life and I promised them I would free them. This plan that we come up with must _not_ include any annihilation of these people."

Kix nodded. "I agree. But like Zargos said, we must take in account of numbers. The Emperor's forces easily out number us 3 to 1."

"But what are our troops like?" Fox spoke up.

Kix responded with worry "They are ready and willing to fight and die for this planet's freedom. But our weapons are not in a good state either. Dager is a peaceful planet, untrained in the art of war, so we don't have very many weapons. What we do have are some swords, guns but we have makeshift weapons.

Fox leaned in and clasped his paws together. "I've been in multiple of wars before. Many times, the odds were not in our favor, but I have seen countless of times victories because the men relied on each other and got each other's backs. Besides, wars are not won by numbers."

"But they sure help." Wolf muttered.

Fox ignored the lupine and continued. "If we can come up with a solid plan of attack, we can keep the casualties to a minimum, save the slaves and kill the Emperor. Also, we can prev…"

 _Fox, stop talking._

The quick message entered his mind and he looked to his left. Krystal was shaking her head quickly. _Please don't. I don't want anyone to know._

"What were you going to say? Were you going to say prevent?" Kix asked. "What can we prevent?"

Fox looked back at the Cerinian telepath. _They need to know._

 _No. Not like this! I will never be the same in the eyes of the team._

 _Krystal, please. It's the team. They love you, no matter what. We have been through everything together. Dinosaur Planet, the Aparoid War. You have to trust them._

The vixen looked around and saw Falco and Slippy looking at the couple. She could tell that they could see that Fox and Krystal were having one of their telepathic conversations. The vixen looked back at the time when she was with the Star Fox team and remembered how welcoming the pair was. Falco with his jokes and Slippy with his quirks. At that moment, the telepath understood that Fox was right. When it comes to the team, it's all or nothing. They will have her back and she would have theirs.

Krystal started, "What Fox meant to say was that, if we could come up with a plan, we could prevent my death."

Everyone looked at her with surprise. "What do you mean Astra?" Zargos asked.

Krystal laughed. "I should have told you sooner. My name is not Astra. It's Krystal." With that statement, she dove into the whole story starting from the crash. She explained what it was like to be possessed by Astra and the horrific things she had to do to stay alive. The awe on the audience's faces were evident as Krystal continued into the story of when Astra relinquished her control and left Krystal's body. Falco silently fist-bumped Fox as Krystal explained her future, but then nodded with awe at her encounter with Astra.

When Krystal finished her story, Fox jumped in with his. The room got silent except with Leon's snickers when Fox reached the point of Falco's death. The blue bird shot Leon a hateful look and the chameleon quickly stopped.

When the vulpine finished the story, the silence in the room was deafening. Finally, Slippy spoke up. "So the option is giving up control, or possibly dying?"

Krystal nodded. "That's the basis of it."

Wolf snarled. "Then what are we waiting for? This crazy panther wants to destroy the world and even the Lylat System! If this… Astra wants to help, then I say let her!" The lupine leaned in "I'm sorry, Krystal, but you'll have to let her in."

"There's no way that's happening!" Fox yelled, "I just got her back and I am not going to lose her again! When I lost her, the pain was too great for me to handle! If Rose was here, facing this problem, would you let her make that choice?"

Wolf stood up immediately and smashed his fist on the table, causing the silverware and plates to rattle and everyone to jump. His voice was dangerously low as his one eye probed his rival. "Fox, don't you dare presume I don't know anything about pain. You are _not_ the only one who has lost a loved one! If I had her back right now in this room," Wolf shook his head, pulled out a flask from his belt and took a deep drink, "I would tell her to give up control so she can live. Because Fox, to have the person with you means everything. Astra is offering you a chance. Take it!"

Fox shook his head. "I disagree! Just because Astra offers a glimpse in the future doesn't mean that would happen. My father…"

Wolf rolled his eyes and threw his hands up, "And there you go again about your father. Talk about having daddy issues."

Fox clenched his jaw. "Let us not forget that he's dead because of _you and your team!_ " he spat out the last statement like a gunshot. "But the point is, each one of us have our own future. Each future is always changing and different. That means I don't believe that the future Astra has shown us is set in stone. The fact that we are even discussing this is ridiculous!"

"Then all of us will die!" Wolf snarled. "If you don't go ahead with this plan, I am out of here! I will not be a part of some war that will only get us killed!"

"Then leave!" Fox shot back, "We don't need your-"

"I'll do it." A feminine voice interrupted.

All eyes swiveled back to the vixen that was sitting next to the leader of the Star Fox team. "I'll give up control to her and she can help us. Wolf won't leave and the Emperor will be killed."

"That's more like it!" Wolf sneered happily, "That's a plan I can stand behind."

"Now, if we can focus on the matter at hand" Kix interrupted. "With the firepower of the Star Fox and Star Wolf team, we can surely mount a full scale assault on the fort. The fort is surrounded by the forest in the west and a giant lake and cliff in the east. Now I suggest we send a squadron, led by Zargos-"

Fox wasn't listening. Instead, his heart was overcome with worry. Worry for the vixen that he had just found two days ago. The vulpine looked at the Cerinian telepath. She glanced back at him then hurriedly looked away. _Krystal, please don't do this._

There was no response from the vixen, so Fox tried again. _Krystal, I can't lose you._

 _You won't_ was the reply _I can fight her. I'm more powerful than before. I can control her._

 _But what if you can't? I can't lose you again._

Krystal smiled, though there were sadness in her eyes. _It's a risk that I'll have to take. If it doesn't work out, then I will have to live with that decision._

"So, are you willing to do that Fox?" Kix asked.

Fox looked away from Krystal and at the leader of the rebellion. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

Wolf scoffed and rolled his eyes. Falco shot a look of anger at the lupine and started to stand up. Slippy quickly restrained the blue bird and with a shake of his head, the ace pilot sat back down.

Kix smiled softly, but with sadness as he understood Fox's predicament. "I said that since Zargos will be leading a squadron to scale the cliff side of the fortress, he would be able to make it because we would launch a frontal assault. Slippy tells me that it is possible for a 'landmaster?" The lynx looked at the toad to make sure that he said it correctly. With a nod from Slippy, Kix continued "You'd be able to lead the assault. The fort is sturdy, but with a couple of attacks from the landmaster, we could surely break it."

"I can do it." Fox nodded. "But what about the sky? They have some fighter planes. We need someone to control the sky to provide support for our troops. Falco?"

The blue bird chuckled. "Do you need to ask? I got your back."

"Good, because you'll be up there with Slippy, and Leon."

Falco's smile disappeared and he looked at the chameleon. Leon was smiling at the discomfort of the blue bird. "But, surely, Leon can be on the ground?"

Fox shook his head. "You'll need all the help you can take. You and Slippy can't control it by yourselves. No offense Slippy."

The toad gave an indignant "Hey!" then paused. Finally he shrugged and nodded. "You're actually right. I'm not good in a fighter plane anyways."

Fox looked back at Falco. "That means you, Leon and Slippy will be controlling the skies. Wolf, Kix, myself, Panther, Zargos and Krystal will be leading the various squadrons to attack the fort. As always, Peppy can monitor things from the Great Fox with ROB."

Zargos leaned in and commented "So let me see if I get this right. I will lead a squadron to scale up a hundred foot cliff while Fox will lead a group with Krystal in a frontal assault. Wolf and Panther will attack from the north side while Kix from the south. Finally, we will have Falco, Leon and Slippy taking the skies and this… Peppy in the Great Fox?"

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement. The plan was set!

/

The Emperor strolled through the dimly-lit hallway, his purple cloak swirling. Torches flickered and danced, casting shadows along the mossy stonewalls. Once the Emperor reached the end of the hallway, the panther turned left and continued down the stairs. Wooden steps creaked and groaned underneath his heavy paws as the Emperor hurried towards his destination. Once he reached the bottom of the stair, two guards immediately came to attention.

"Where is Commander Ragas?" the Emperor inquired.

"Sire, he is inside, with the prisoner. Would you like for me to fetch him?" the first guard answered.

The mad panther shook his head. "I want to see him."

"As you wish my lord."

With a silent salute, the guard turned around and started to head down the hallway. Cells with rusty metal cages lined the walls as the Emperor glanced in each one of them. They were all empty save for one and the mad panther heard grunting coming from it.

Commander Ragas was focused on his work, that he did not hear his leader approach the cell. His tail lashed mercilessly against the prisoner who was tied against the chair. Once! Twice! Thrice! Each hit brought out a groan of pain and finally the lizard Commander stopped, breathing heavily. He turned around at the sound of the metal gate squeaking as the Emperor stepped through. The panther king observe the prisoner before him with his one good eye.

Blood and scars covered the cheetah. Both of his eyes were swollen shut and bruising appeared on his abdomen. The cheetah coughed out blood and rolled his neck until it was resting on the back of the chair. His strong paws were tightly bounded behind him, causing him not to move. The Commander smiled evilly, curled his claw into a fist and slammed it into the stomach of the prisoner. The cheetah doubled over, hacking and coughing, then started to pass out again.

The Emperor strode confidently to the prisoner, picked up his head and whispered "Just tell me where they are and I'll spare your life."

The cheetah took several deep breaths and struggled to shake his head. "Better to sacrifice my life than thousands other. I will never tell!"

Commander Ragas rolled his eyes, obviously knowing what will happen next. The Emperor merely nodded. "I admire that. You've got bravery, loyalty and courage. But those are not enough to help you. I'll ask you one more time, where are they?"

The cheetah's eyes burned with hatred. "I'll tell you this one last time scum! I'll never talk!" He spat and the Emperor did not flinch. Instead, he wiped the blood stained spit with his paw off his face.

"You brought this upon yourself. Remember, everyone has a breaking point." The Emperor turned and looked at the lizard Commander. "Bring in the potion!"

The Commander smiled. "As you wish my lord."

The cheetah struggled helplessly as a big pot was wheeled in, pushed by two lizards. The Emperor dipped a ladle in and sniffed it. "I would not want to be on the receiving end of this. What happened was that we were trying to figure out a better method on getting information from harder prisoners, such as yourself. Commander Ragas here, has led an expedition to develop a 'truth serum' but he came out with something more."

The Emperor poured the liquid into a small cup and walked to the cheetah. "I'd be lying if I said this won't be painful. Restrain him!"

The cheetah thrashed, kicked and attempted to bite. Commander Ragas jumped behind him and held his shoulders while two other guards held the flailing legs. The Emperor held the cup of liquid and noticed that the cheetah was keeping his mouth shut. The mad panther shook his head and pinched the prisoner on the nose, momentarily cutting off his airways. The cheetah quickly opened his mouth to gain breath, and the Emperor seized that chance. He poured the liquid into the prisoner and forced the cheetah to swallow. Once his mouth was empty, the cheetah started to thrash even more, causing the lizards to redouble their efforts. Finally he went still.

The single torch on the wall illuminated the still body of the cheetah. For a few minutes, the prisoner didn't move and the Emperor was about to give up. The mad panther shook his head, obviously disappointed with the results. "Clean this up and throw the body into-"

The cheetah gave out a long howl, interrupting the Emperor and causing him to jump. Commander Ragas quickly moved over and opened one of his eyelids. Instead of normal eyes, the prisoner's eyes were dilated and the Commander looked back at his leader and hissed happily, "It's working."

The prisoner continued to thrash, then he shot up, looking at the Commander and the Emperor with fury. "What did you do to me?" he rasped.

The Emperor smiled. "This potion overloaded your brain. Can't you feel it? Every word, every breath you take, every movement you make causes you pain. I can guarantee you that the pain will go away with the antidote," he gestured and the cheetah looked over and saw that Commander Ragas was holding a syringe. The Emperor opened his hands and walked across the cell to a wooden table and sat on top of it. "But I understand if you're too loyal. So what is it going to be?"

The prisoner groaned and then howled with pain. The sound echoed through the hallways and up to the grounds. He shook with pain and kept shaking his head. Tears filled his eyes and the cheetah wept uncontrollably, because of the pain and of the dilemma that he is facing. Finally, he whispered, "Give me the antidote."

The Emperor shook his head. "Not the deal. The location first, then the antidote. Quickly now, the window is closing." With a wave of his paw, the Commander started to squeeze the syringe, causing some of the liquid to dribble out.

The dilemma was clear on the young cheetah's face. Finally, he nodded. The Emperor smiled victoriously. _Finally, I can crush this rebellion!_ The mad panther leaned in and the cheetah whispered in his ear. The Emperor slowly nodded and stood back straighter. "As promised, Commander Ragas will give you the antidote and you will be free of the pain."

Liquid stopped dribbling out of the syringe as the lizard Commander moved forward. He shoved the needle not so gently into the arm of the prisoner and emptied the whole thing. The cheetah howled and thrashed even more and after a few minutes of groaning, went perfectly still. The Emperor walked over and checked the prisoner's pulse and was unsurprised at the result. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a handkerchief and proceeded to wipe his hands. Finally, the mad panther turned around and headed to the cell door only to stop to comment "Clean this up and throw his body into the lake. The fish can have a feast."

The lizard Commander nodded. He barked out an order and the guards hurried to obey. The Emperor started to leave, then he stopped and turned around and said "Ragas, I want you to personally lead a squadron of your own choosing to destroy the rebellion. Leave none alive, except for Fox McCloud and his vixen!" He chuckled evilly. "I have plans for them."

With that word, the Emperor slammed the cell door shut and continued his way up to his castle. With every step that the mad panther took, the torches started to dim as evil followed.

/

Everyone was gone, save for two. Fox McCloud was out of his chair and pacing restlessly with a million thoughts racing through his head. Krystal sat cross legged in her own chair, watching and waiting for the leader of the Star Fox team to say something. _Will the choice I am about to make the right choice? I just got Fox back and I don't want to leave him again._

She knew how much love the vulpine had for her and understood what it meant. Sadness then settled in as Krystal was hit with the realization that Fox would do anything to protect her and to keep her from harm. The vixen thought of the multiple of times the leader of the Star Fox team rescued her life during his adventures in Dinosaur Planet and the Aparoid War. The Cerinian telepath quickly wiped a tear away as she thought, _Now I am betraying his trust and testing the bounds of his loyalty._ With that thought she prepared herself for an argument.

Fox stopped pacing, turned around and looked at the vixen, his emerald green eyes shooting love, joy, hope and sadness within a matter of seconds. Finally the leader of the Star Fox team walked slowly to the vixen and the telepath braced herself. Fox knelt on the ground with both knees, took her hands in his, and looked at her directly in the eyes and said, "I support you."

Krystal was taken aback with those words. She had expected an argument, or even a furious physical fight. She had many different points outlined in her head to use, and once Fox said the statement, she lost her argument plans. The Cerinian telepath looked at the vulpine staring back at her and squeaked with disbelief. "You do? What about your whole presentation about the future?"

"I stand by what I said," Fox commented, "But teammates must always support each other. I won't let you down because you are family. It doesn't mean I have to like it, but I will always support and respect your decision. I just know that if you are by my side, every fight that happens will seem like an insect. My love for you is bigger than the world's problems. With love, we learn to accept and with much difficulty, to let go. I trust you Krystal. You are a fighter. You are a warrior. You are kind, caring, compassionate, and trusting and a better fox than I could ever be. Because of this I know that you can keep Astra in control. I know you will come back to the team… and to me."

Krystal caught a sob, but Fox wasn't done. He stood up and reached in his backpack that he carried around at all times and pulled out an item, wrapped in cloth. "I was going to give this to you when I found you. This seems like a right time as any." The vulpine handed it to her and the telepath slowly opened it. The candle light illuminated the golden handles as she gasped.

"You've kept it this whole time? Even when I was dead?"

Fox crossed his arms and nodded. "It didn't seem right to get rid of it. I knew you were alive somehow and it was yours."

The vixen caused the staff to spread to its full length, admiring the golden handles and the razor sharp edges of the blade. She took several swings, testing the balance and the handles of the weapon. With the staff, Krystal felt free. She felt like two parts of herself, the Star Fox mercenary and the Cerinian warrior, was finally completed. The vixen whirled it about as Fox watched her. He was amazed at her speed and her quickness as she fought against imaginary enemies. The way she moved her body was like she was walking on air while her eyes twinkled like the stars in the night sky. Krystal spun around and leveled the blade onto Fox's throat, panting heavily. She stood up straighter and shrunk the staff. The vixen leaned in and kissed Fox on the cheek and looked deeply into his eyes. "I want you to keep it."

"But…"

"No buts. Like I said, the staff has a master and it has chosen you. I am no longer its owner. Besides, keep it in my memory."

"Don't talk like that!" Fox said his voice cracking, "You will fight her! You will come back to us."

Krystal nodded, barely believing his words. "Even still, it's yours."

The Cerinian telepath turned around and started to head towards the door. She felt a hand grab her and she spun around until she was staring at the eyes of McCloud. Finally, he sighed and pulled her into a hug, his head resting on hers as she leaned into his chest. Fox breathed in the scent of her perfume and smiled. _Lilacs,_ he thought. _She still remembered._ The couple stayed interlocked into the hug, each enjoying the other's company. The room was silent and the temperature slowly dropped as the noon sun started to sink lower. The leaves outside rustled, dancing in the wind, which was music to the vixen's ears. _I need to enjoy everything right now_ , Krystal thought, _this may be my last chance._

A whirring noise was heard in the distance and Fox looked up. His ears perked and twirled around, attempting to find the location of the mysterious sound. Soon, the whirring stopped and it was replaced by whistling. Immediately, his training kicked in and the leader of the Star Fox team did what his instincts told him to do. He grasped Krystal even tighter and dove towards the ground, attempting to shield the vixen.

 _Boom!_

The side wall of the room exploded, splinters shattering everywhere. Debris and wood showered McCloud as he continued to guard his loved one from harm. A supporting pole started to creak, then underneath the weight of the collapsing roof, snapped in two and fell, thundering towards the couple. Fortunately, Fox saw it coming and rolled out of the way, his muscle carrying Krystal around and finally underneath him again.

After a few seconds, the couple stood up, dust clogging their lungs and blocking their vision. Krystal looked at the leader of the Star Fox team who was mouthing something. She shook her head, attempting to lose the ringing in her hears. Fox tried again and Krystal shook her head again, finally pointing to her ears. Fox grabbed her hands to bring the attention on him and tried a last time, and the vixen made out "…You okay?"

"Yes!" Krystal answered, relieved that she could hear. "What happened?"

Fox shook his head. "I intend to find out!" He fished the staff out of the debris and immediately caused it to spring to full size. The two then worked their way out of the half-demolished building.

It was a war zone. Planes flew overhead dropping bombs at the camp. Women and children were screaming with fear. Men were hollering at each other to find a weapon. Fox grabbed Krystal's hand and started to run. He knew that Kix was near the center of the camp and made a beeline towards it. An explosion was heard as a hut next to the couple blew up, another target of the blast. A sliver of wood pierced and cut McCloud's cheek, but the vulpine determinedly pushed forward. "Keep your head down and follow me!"

Krystal nodded following Fox's direction. The vixen kept her eyes down on the ground and prepared herself for any pain that she may experience. The couple raced through what was left of the camp until Fox heard "Evacuate the camp! Retreat to Vespian Cave! Go now! Hurry!"

Fox scanned the screaming crowd searching for the lynx. The Star Wolf and the rest of the Star Fox team was already there with Zargos, attempting to do some crowd control. The leader of the Star Fox team immediately spoke to Kix "What happened?"

"It's the Emperor's soldiers! Someone must have told them!"

"The scout?"

 _Boom!_

Kix nodded wordlessly and Fox bit back a curse. A plan was forming in his head and he told the lynx his thoughts in a rushed statement. "We need to break your army into a small group. Leave some with me and take the others with the camp. I'll fight back and try to buy you time!"

"I'll stay with you!" Krystal said. "Don't argue with me, I have made my decision!"

Fox nodded with relief that he wasn't going to be alone. "I'll stay with you McCloud." A gruff voice said.

The vulpine looked at the leader of the Star Wolf team with surprise. "Are you sure?"

 _Boom!_

The lupine gave Fox a sly wink. "I can't have you hogging all the glory now can I? Leon! Panther! Go to the cave with Kix and do whatever he says! That's an order!"

The chameleon and panther nodded quickly and started to follow the streaming crowd that was disappearing even deeper into the forest. "What do you want me to do Fox?" Falco yelled.

"Take Slippy and once everyone is gone, act as the vanguard! If they overcome us, I want you to try to take care of them! Contact Peppy and tell him that we need support! And Falco?" Fox paused, "If I don't come back, you're in charge." The leader of the Star Fox team held out a hand and said "Falco, you are my best friend and I am honored to have you on the team."

 _Boom!_

Falco grasped it and replied "You're coming back." The blue bird and the toad then disappeared into the crowd of families.

"I'm staying as well," Zargos yelled over the noise, as he drew his own sword and sprung his claws.

"Are you sure about that?"

The warrior cat nodded and looked at Krystal. "I promised her that I would protect her with my life. It is a debt that I would never repay."

The rebellion leader looked at Fox then ducked as an explosion sounded. He looked around at the crowd of soldiers and yelled out "Minho and Grayfur! Take your squadron and follow whatever this man says!"

The two soldiers, another lynx and a hare saluted and barked out orders, forming their own squadrons. Kix looked back at Fox and commented. "I've only known you for two days, and already you're the bravest man I have ever known. Thank you."

Fox smiled and Kix turned around and raced off barking orders for a vanguard to be created. McCloud then turned around and reached into his backpack, pulled out a blaster and handed it to Krystal. The vixen accepted it wordlessly, nodding her thanks. The explosions finally stopped, giving the soldiers on the ground a grateful break. Through the clogged smoke, the setting sun shone, its glow providing hope to the rebellions. Finally the hare, Grayfur, spoke "Have they gone?"

Fox shook his head. "That was just the bombing run. The real invasion happens now. Our job is to stop any attack from happening and reaching the hideout."

Murmurs of fear spread amongst the tiny squadrons of soldiers. It seemed like hope was lost as they waited for the inevitable to happen. Some started to break down and cry, wishing that they were back with their loved ones while others quaked in their boots with fear. With the surprise attack, all moral was diminished until a voice rose over them "My name is Fox McCloud and I promise you, I will fight with each and every inch of my life!"

Disbelief spread through the squadrons as each soldier whispered. "Fox McCloud? _The_ Fox McCloud? I heard that he is impossible to kill."

"I heard that he flew through 500 enemy fighters to kill Andross!"

"I heard it was a thousand!"

"We are all saved! Yay for Fox McCloud!"

Cheers arose from the ragged soldiers and Fox smiled. "But wars were not won by me! Wars were won by my team. We fought, never gave up and believed in ourselves and each other! Look around you!" the vulpine commanded and the soldiers obeyed his orders. Each soldier eyes were looking at their partners and their peers. "They are your family. Your friends! Rely on each other, watch out for each other." He paused and looked at Krystal. "Use your love you have for each other and fight! Fight against the evilness that they bring! Fight against death and destruction! Fight for your family and fight so they may live! Because if I know one thing… it's that all of you are the bravest men I have ever seen and they are the cowards!"

Spears, swords, guns and other makeshift weapons waved into the air as the soldiers stamped and cheered. Krystal smiled at Fox and Wolf rolled his eyes, and crossed his arms. "Minho, take your squadron and move to the right side of the camp. You will be our flank. Don't attack until I give you the signal, then you move your squadron behind the enemy to cut off their retreat. Do you have any bombs?"

Minho nodded, "They are in the area where we are headed to right now. The explosions haven't touched them."

Fox nodded, reached into his backpack and pulled out a small circular device. "Take them and when I give the signal, this will light up red. When you see that happen, attack! Have some men throw the bombs on the planes. We want to cut them off!"

"They will be trapped." Minho smiled and accepted the device. "I'm on it!" The lynx barked out an order and Minho's squadron moved towards the area that Fox mentioned. The vulpine turned to Wolf and said "Wolf, I want you to take half of Grayfur's squadron and move to the left side. Wait for the lizards to attack then I want you to be the battering ram. Catch them by surprise!"

Wolf rolled his eyes again, displeased with taking orders but he didn't argue. With a gruff voice he pointed at an antelope and said, "I want you and over, follow me!" The leader of the Star Wolf team moved out with his men.

Fox finally turned to Grayfur and commented "Spread out your men. Have them hide in the craters, broken houses but make sure they can move. I don't want them to be caught and unable to escape if we are overwhelmed."

The hare nodded his approval and turned around "Alright men! You heard what he said! Now move it!" The soldiers jumped and followed the orders of the Star Fox leader.

Once everything was set, all that was left was to wait. The smoke started to clear out, allowing the sun more access. Next to Fox, Zargos muttered, "Finally, we can see their ugly mugs."

Fox nodded and readied his staff. He heard footsteps, crunching against the dirt and rock. Then it sped up. Finally a lizard charged out of the shadows with a spear, yelling as he ran. As soon as he did, he collapsed into the ground as a sizeable hole appeared in his forehead. Krystal stood expressionlessly as smoke blew out of the barrel of the gun. _That's my girl_ Fox thought proudly to himself.

Out of the smoke, more lizards charged yelling and hissing. Some carried swords, spears and guns. Seeing that there was only two of them, they sped up, determined to rip them apart. Gunshots were heard as the lizards fell like dominos, but more kept coming. Fox stood his ground then when one started to get closer, he readied his staff.

The battle commenced as sword clashed against staff and gunshots continued to sound. Fox whirled among the ranks of the lizards, his staff quickly covering with blood as he stabbed and swiped. Up, down and around was the staff of death, connecting with each target that he sought. Krystal was next to him, grunting and fighting. She lost the blaster in the middle of the fight as a lizard knocked it away. She ducked a sword swing and caught his arm. The vixen punched the lizard in the side of the face with her left paw, stunning him. She disarmed the soldier and ran him through the stomach with his own sword. Grayfur was having some problems as he was surrounded by lizards, an ear torn off and he was missing a part of his tail bob until Fox and Zargos fought their way to help the beleaguered hare. Standing back to back, the hare, vulpine and the cat caused a triangle of mayhem as more soldiers fell to their blades.

A lull in the fighting happened as a loud howling was heard. "Death to them all!" and "Freedom from the Emperor!" was the cry as Wolf O' Donnell's squadron smashed against the lizards. The soldiers had no time to register what happened as they received the onslaught from the tiny group of soldiers. Fox kept his focus on the fighting, and next to him an elk fell to a spear and McCloud redoubled his efforts, but he felt his energy was draining. He reached into his pocket and pressed the button, praying that Minho's squadron would come to help. Next to him, Zargos fought doggedly on, his sword and claws tinged with dark blood. He slashed, stabbed and raked into the enemies. A sword pierced his shoulder and the warrior cat roared with anger and killed the attacker. He drew the sword out of his shoulder, and snapped it effortlessly against his leg. Fox noticed his soldiers were growing smaller by the minute and he yelled out "Fall back! Move to the arena!"

The soldiers turned around to follow their leader's bidding. They ran and then found themselves facing more lizards! A moan of despair escaped one soldier's lips as his fate was sealed by a proper thrust of a spear. Fox's group became smaller and smaller as each soldier fell due to the sheer numbers of the lizards. Suddenly, they all stopped fighting, but kept their weapons trained at them.

An evil laughter was heard throughout the camp as the lizards soldiers parted for a figure. Commander Ragas walked through the smoke. He was wearing a black body armor from his neck down to his feet. His tail stretched on the ground and was pointed with a metal sharp and blood. The lizard Commander sniffed the air and commented "So many deaths. It smells so sweet." Commander Ragas stepped even closer, and said "I have a proposition."

Krystal's body shook with rage, but Fox was as cool as ice. "What is it?"

The lizard commander spread out his claws, the sunlight glinting off the razor sharp metal. He motioned towards someone and a lizard carried out the unconscious form of Minho. The lizard dropped the lynx and he crashed against the ground. Immediately Krystal used her telepathic powers and was relieved to find out that the soldier was still alive. Commander Ragas hissed "Your plan failed. I saw him and his group try to destroy our ships!" He chuckled evilly. "I had enjoyed killing every last one of them!"

Fox's heart sunk at the news, but the Commander was not done "But the proposition is this. Give up yourself and the vixen and I will spare their miserable lives, including this one." He gestured to Minho.

Fox looked at Krystal and immediately sent a message _If we ever do, they are going to kill everyone anyways._

Krystal nodded quickly. _Whatever you choose, know that I am at your side. Always._

Fox thought for a few seconds then answered her, _High or low?_

Krystal understood the message. _You have the staff. You go high, and I go low. Just like old times huh?_

Seconds seemed like minutes as the two minds mended with each other, each understanding the other's strengths and weaknesses. The joy and the pain. Krystal experienced Fox sobbing in his room, as he clutched her sweater. Fox saw the memory of Krystal/Astra raising a knife and plunging it into the neck of an innocent civilian. But as each experience passed through the other, Fox and Krystal felt connected, their bond growing with each passing minute. Finally, Fox understood Krystal's compassion while Krystal, Fox's determination. The vulpine and the vixen nodded at each other, understanding what to do.

Fox chuckled and turned back to Commander Ragas. "Here's my answer."

The vulpine and the vixen both charged, heading towards the lizard commander. Their enemy hissed with glee as he readied himself for a fight by drawing his sword and his tail raising off the ground. The lizard and rebellion soldiers backed away, creating a huge circle knowing that any interference with a battle amongst leaders would result in death. At the last minute, Fox slammed the staff into the ground, vaulting through the air, his boot aiming at the lizard's snout. Krystal dove at the feet and Commander Ragas, not knowing what to do, chose to duck. Fox sailed above the lizard, but the commander took the brunt of Krystal's kick and crashed into the ground. The lizard commander hissed angrily, as he quickly picked himself off the ground and the battle started.

Steel crashed against steel as the vixen connected with the lizard Commander. Knowing that Fox was behind him, he spun around and blocked Fox's attack as his tail whirled around, its metal tip threatening blood. Krystal ducked underneath the onslaught of the tail and attempted to go around. Commander Ragas' long tail had a mind of its own as it moved like a snake, searching for any weakness in Krystal's defense. Fox held the staff horizontally and attacked that way, the staff a blur as he hoped to throw the Commander off balance. However, the lizard Commander was an experienced campaigner and he was able to block each attack with efficiency. Pain flashed through Commander Ragas' back as Krystal's sword found its way past the tail defense and connected into the lower back. He spun around and backhanded the vixen and she sailed through the air, crashing into the ground, her sword clattering several feet away. There she lay unmoving.

Fox used it as an opportunity and jumped, bringing his staff into an overhead chop, but the ever alert tail blocked it. The commander spun back around to face his adversary. Steel rang out like a bell through the silent air as each sword attack was blocked by the staff. Commander Ragas moved relentlessly, raining blow after blow on the tired vulpine. Finally the lizard Commander started to swing his sword to the left, and Fox moved his staff to block it, but at the last minute, Commander Ragas stopped his attack and spun around, hoping his metal tail would pierce his enemy. However, he misjudged the distance and as the part of the tail closest to his body connected with McCloud and the leader of the Star Fox team flew through the air and crashed into the ground, all wind driven out of him. Commander Ragas laughed evilly as he raised his sword to finish the job. He started to drive the point down and then howled with pain.

Commander Ragas had forgotten about Krystal as she shook herself awake, found her sword and raced across the battleground. She plunged the sword into the lizard's back, the armor blocking the majority of the strike, but the tip still found the target. "Foolish girl! You can't kill me!" The lizard Commander hissed as he turned around to face his adversary. He raised his tail with anger and started to strike.

 _Clang!_

Fox had gotten up and raced to where Krystal was at speeds that surprised even him. The vulpine had gotten on his knees and raised the staff in a horizontal position. The metallic part of the tail hit against the staff and reverberated through McCloud. The leader of the Star Fox team stood up and continued his onslaught on Commader Ragas, determined to never let the lizard near his love.

For his size, the Commander was surprisingly nimble. He ducked, dodged, and weaved around each and every one of Fox's attacks. With each effort, Fox was getting tired, but he stubbornly pushed through his exhaustion. McCloud swung the staff low, then spun around bringing it high, hoping to catch his adversary off guard. Commander Ragas saw the move coming and expertly moved out of the way. He sidestepped quickly around McCloud and as quick as lightning, his tail wrapped around the neck of his victim.

A gasp arose from the crowd as they saw their hero at the tail of the lizard. McCloud was choking audibly as he struggled against Commander Ragas' vicelike tail. The lizard the vulpine in closer and with his putrid hot breath washing over his victim, Commander Ragas chuckled evilly. "I told you. I told everyone here. You can't kill me. You never will!"

With a powerful heave, Commander Ragas threw the leader of the Star Fox team across the area. Fox crashed against the ground with a thud. In a daze, Fox watched Commander Ragas walk back to the fallen form of the vixen. The Commander had his sword drawn out and dragged the tip in the dirt, leaving a small line. The lizard kneeled down and remarked. "So we meet again."

McCloud saw the lizard stand up and the vulpine struggled to get up. He finally regained his footing and started to run. Everything seemed like slow motion to the tired, battle-scarred vulpine. Commander Ragas raised up his sword and stabbed downwards. The vulpine felt his heart drop and he didn't know which one caused it: The sight of Commander Ragas stabbing Krystal or the groan that erupted from the fallen vixen. Rage erupted from Fox as he raced across the area, jumped in the air and brought the staff down on the most convenient target: Commander Ragas' tail.

 _Squelch_

Commander Ragas roared with pain, as his tail fell from the severed stump. He turned around and swung his sword, attempting to chop the head off of the leader of the Star Fox team. Fox raised up the staff at the last minute and took the brunt of the attack. He backed up as the Commander continued his attack, as the lifeless tail laid at the edge of the battlefield. Metal clashed against metal as rage controlled Fox and pain took over the Commander. This time, both were not fighting for their causes, they were fighting for revenge.

Fox was the first to realize this, so he changed his mindset. _Revenge is always the root of pain_ Peppy had always said. _If you fight a battle for revenge, you've already lost._ The vulpine ducked a horizontal attack and kicked the Commander heavily in the chest. The lizard backed up with surprise, growled then continued his onslaught. This time, Fox was ducking, dodging and weaving every attack as he worked his way around to the fallen tail. Once McCloud got there, the vulpine rolled, dodging an attack attempt, and in one smooth movement picked up the tail and immediately swung it like whip. The end of the tail wrapped around the Commander's neck and the lizard fell to his knees choking. Fox smiled with victory, but the lizard wasn't done. With all of his strength, the Commander wrapped his claw and pulled on his own tail and attempted to punch Fox with his free hand.

Fox felt himself being pulled forward, so he immediately let go of his tail. The unexpected movement from the vulpine cause the Commander to crash backwards on the ground, hacking and coughing. The vulpine smiled as he walked to the Commander and said "You're reign of evil will be over." As he started to stab the lizard, the Commander's instinct took over and the lizard swept the legs of McCloud and Fox crashed against the ground. Knowing that the battle was over, the lizard Commander picked up his severed tail and yelled out hoarsely to his soldiers. "You fools! Kill them! Kill them all!"

Both sides clashed again with each other. Wolf was using his blaster and rapidly picking off the lizards one by one. Zargos, having lost his sword, sprung both of his razor sharp claws and dove into the fray. Fox wearily picked himself off the ground and looked at Krystal. She was not moving. Ignoring the battle around him, McCloud slowly walked to the fallen form of his love. Explosions and screaming were heard all around, but his eyes focused on his target.

He knelt down tiredly and immediately checked her pulse. It was there, but very faint. He touched her wound and was surprised at how much blood covered his paw. _She's losing way too much blood_. Fox thought.

Krystal's turquoise eyes fluttered open, providing a small beacon of hope in Fox's heart. She looked behind him and her mouth moved.

Fox leaned in, not hearing what she said.

"B-behind you!"

The vulpine turned around and saw a lizard screaming and running towards him with a sword. McCloud went to raise his staff, but realized he didn't have it. It was still in the same place where Commander Ragas had kicked him. Suddenly, an explosion happened and where the lizard was, was a small crater. Fox looked up and saw a familiar plane with the Star Fox logo, flying overhead. Joyfully, Fox opened the comms and created a line to the pilot.

"Falco!"

"Hey buddy! So good to hear from you again! I hope I am not too late!"

Fox laughed with relief. "You arrived on time Falco! Peppy pulled through!"

Fox continued to watch the Arwing circle around for another diving run. He saw Falco give him a thumbs up and continue his work. More explosions happened as Slippy arrived in the battle followed by Leon and Panther in their Wolfens. Lizard soldiers fled in a panic, thinking that they were outnumbered with the reinforcements. Commander Ragas looked up with disbelief and hissed, "This isn't over McCloud! The Emperor will kill you all!"

The lizard Commander raced off with the fleeing lizards back to their own ships, still holding the severed tail. The remaining soldiers gave out a loud cheer as the Arwings and the Wolfens circled around, providing protection.

A high pitch voice came over the comms "Fox! Are you okay? Is Krystal okay?"

Fox shook his head. "Krystal is dying Slip. She needs medical attention."

There was a long intake of breath from his friends. "Can we transport her to the Great Fox?" Falco asked.

"No time. She needs it NOW."

Even though he was in the air, Fox saw his best friend nod. "Alright McCloud. I'm heading back to base." With that said, the Arwing turned around and raced back to where it came from.

Fox knelt down and ripped off a piece of his clothing. He pushed it against the wound but it provided very little buffer since the wound was bleeding even more. Krystal was groaning with pain and once she felt Fox's hand on her she stopped. Her mouth opened, attempting to form words, but after a few tries, she gave up.

"Please don't go Krystal. I just got you back." Fox muttered to himself. Suddenly, he felt a paw reach up and touch his cheek. Fox looked down at his love and was surprised at how calm she was.

 _Fight._

The single telepathic message went through his mind and at the one word, Fox's eyes welled up with tears. He nodded quickly. "I will when you get better! Falco is going to get Kix right now. Pretty soon, you'll be fine. YOU fight!"

 _Fox… you don't understand. This is my time._

"Don't say that Krys!" Fox was crying even harder, as he attempted to stop the bleeding. "You'll be fine."

 _Thank you Fox._ Krystal shuddered. _The past years were the best of my life, and you made it happen. But Fox. It's time to let me go. For real this time._

The vulpine shook his head again. The battle was finished but McCloud didn't care. He was focused on his vixen. The victorious soldiers surrounded and silently watched their leader. They saw him stiffen and then slowly nod. Fox leaned in and kissed Krystal on the lips and then back off. Instead of standing up, Fox kept the pressure on her wound.

Krystal looked at the leader of the Star Fox team and smiled. _I love you._

"I love you too Krystal. Please! I'm begging you! Don't go!"

Krystal coughed, pain overwhelming her. She turned her snowy, scarred face and looked over the battlefield. She saw bodies, both the rebellions and the lizards, lay unmoving. Krystal slowly turned her head back to McCloud, and she started to cry.

Fox kept the pressure on the wound, but when he heard the vixen start crying, he concernedly asked "Is everything okay? Am I hurting you?"

Krystal shook her head. "So many deaths. I just can't help but think... Was it all worth it?"

Fox sighed. He hated the "was it worth it?" question, but he nodded. "It is. They gave their lives for what they believed in. They gave their lives to protect their family, to protect this planet. Remember, there is no greater love than this, to sacrifice one's life for his brothers. They will be remembered."

They were silent for a few minutes. _Where is Falco?_ Fox thought with panic. _He needs to get back here now!_ With each passing second, Fox's paw became redder and redder as the maroon colored blood poured out of the wound of the vixen. He could feel her breathing become shallower.

 _The sunset's beautiful._

The single telepathic message caught him by surprise. The vulpine looked down at his love and saw that she was looking to her right. He followed her gaze and saw that she was right. The orange glow reverberated across the battlefield and even during the time of evil, the light provided comfort.

 _You are that sun, Fox. Beautiful, yet powerful. Merciless, yet kind. Never change. Promise me._

"I-I promise!"

Krystal smiled and gazed deeply into McCloud. Krystal smiled and gazed deeply into McCloud, the concerned emerald eyes washing over her. She finally felt comfortable and at peace. He' so handsome, the Cerinian telepath thought, it's a pity. The vixen reflected on her adventures with Fox McCloud: the time where she first laid eyes on him on Dinosaur Planet, the Aparoid War where the entire team fearlessly fought the Queen. But her favorite moment was the silent moments. The two of them sitting on the couch, watching a movie on the Great Fox, enjoying each other's company. She knew she would miss that. _It's a pity_ , she thought to herself _I want a family with him._

As his emerald green eyes washed over her, the Cerinian telepath felt herself drowning. As the sun set across the horizon, Krystal's eyes shut and everything went black.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

 _Dager_

Kix looked out in the night from the mouth of the cave, his eyes straining. With each passing moment, the lynx's heart sunk deeper and deeper as the leader became even more depressed. He looked into the forest as the river bubbled and gurgled, for a familiar face or a comforting sound. Cries and wailing echoed from the cave as men comforted their wives of the loss of their loved ones and their homes. Children continued to play, their innocence as strong as ever as they did not know what had happened earlier. As the noise reached his ears, Kix's spirit slowly became crushed as his ears drooped lower and lower. _So much death. The Emperor has won._

The leader turned to enter the cave to consider his options. The fear that remained in his heart had finally won. The Emperor had crushed the Star Fox team. Even when Falco left the cave with Slippy, Leon and Panther to provide reinforcements, it wasn't enough. The lynx sighed with sadness and continued to listen to the cries of his people As soon as he stepped paw into the cave, a faint whirring sound was heard. His ears shot up and Kix turned around worriedly. _Did the Emperor find us?_

Out of the horizon came a light, but the ship was still under the cover of darkness. Kix started to back up into the cave nervously, ready to yell out a warning. The plane passed overhead, banked around and started to slow down. As it got ready to land, Kix looked in closer and noticed the familiar logo.

A hissing noise was heard as the cockpit opened and the pilot jumped out. Falco Lombardi landed on the ground with a grunt, and the blue bird hurried to the leader of the rebellion. Once Falco reached Kix, the lynx smiled hugely. "Falco! I'm so glad to see that you're alright!" he said with relief. "Where's everyone?"

"I've come to you about that." The blue bird said breathlessly. "I need several of your best medics. We've driven the invasion away, but a lot of soldiers are badly wounded. Krystal included."

Kix nodded quickly. "We don't have a lot of people who are trained in the art of medicine. But I know of five and myself. Let me gather my supplies."

"Let's get going then!" Falco snapped. "If Krystal dies when we get there, then you have Fox to answer to!"

The lynx jumped and sped into the cave calling out different names. Soon, three males and two females stood up, with their medical bags at ready. The small group started to leave the cave, when a voice from behind called out. "Is it safe to go back home?"

Kix looked at Falco, and the blue bird shook his head. "It's a mess there." Falco answered. "But I promise you, that when we get there, we will send the healthy back home with the wounded."

The blue bird stopped himself when he saw the expression of the speaker. It was a female antelope. Her eyes were red, and her nose was runny. "I also promise you that we will give your loved ones a proper burial."

The antelope burst into tears as her family surrounded to try to comfort her. Kix patted Falco's back and wordlessly, the small group left the cave and went into the darkness.

/

An hour had passed and Fox McCloud hadn't left the side of his love. All around him, chaos ensued as the soldiers started to clean up the battlefield and tending the wounded. But McCloud didn't care about any of that. He was focused on the single figure that was laying on the ground before him: Krystal.

For the umpteenth time, Fox reached down and checked her pulse. It was weak but it was still there. The vulpine stood up and stretched, not realizing how sore he was. When Krystal passed out, Fox was thankful for that as he started on his work. As he kept his pressure on the wound, he called for another soldier to help. A female bird named Bella had heard his pleas and rushed over to Fox's side. Together, with Bella keeping pressure on the wound, Fox was able to clean out the deep gash in her side with water. "Do you have any stitches?" Fox asked the bird next to him.

Bella nodded. "I always try to carry a first aid kit with me. Let's swap places and you keep the pressure on her."

Fox did what he was told to and resumed his position. Bella stood up and raced away, only to return a few moments later with needle and thread. Her face was in worry as she spoke "This is not sterilized. It could cause an infection and she could die from it."

"I don't care about that." Fox shook his head. "She's dying now anyways."

Bella hesitated then decided that the leader of the Star Fox team was right. She gave the needle and thread to the vulpine commenting "I hope you know how to do it. I was never taught this."

Fox chuckled as he looked at the pink bird. "It's been a long time, so it'll come out ugly."

With that statement, Fox dove right in. He cleaned Krystal's wound with water again and with Bella's help, attempted to close it. Fox muttered to himself as he attempted to remember his training. He tied the thread at the end of the needle and started at the bottom of Krystal's gash. In and out, Fox worked quickly and with each movement, the wound started to close, but there was still a lot of blood. Once Fox was satisfied with his work, he cut the end of the thread and sat back panting heavily. Doing medical work took a toll on him and he just had an increased amount of respect for all the medical practitioners back on Corneria. Bella attempted to clean the wound with more water and once she was satisfied, she sat back down next to the vulpine.

Finally, the pink bird spoke. "So you're Fox McCloud huh?'

"Huh?" Fox looked up. "Yeah. Yeah, I am."

"Thank you."

Fox nodded, knowing what she was talking about. "I should be thanking you, Bella. Thank you for your help in saving her life." He returned his attention to the vixen.

Bella nodded and smiled. Suddenly she turned serious. "Is it a hard life?"

Fox was caught off guard with that question. It echoed through his head and he wasn't sure how to give an answer. Finally he slowly nodded and answered. "Yes. There hasn't been a day that went by where I wish I would just be done. I want to settle down and have a family." He directed the word family at the vixen lying before him. "But my team is my family. Falco, Slippy, Peppy and Krystal. They are everything I've got and if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be the man I am today. Yes, it's a hard life running Star Fox, but when you surround yourself by family and friends, it makes the going easier."

Bella was surprised at the humble answer from the leader of the Star Fox team. She had expected an arrogant "I can do everything, who are you to question me?" type of answer. The pink bird had an increased respect for the vulpine who was sitting next to her. At that moment, Bella felt safe and secure. She knew that Fox and his team was there to help them, and not gain any glory out of it. Bella smiled and stood up, dusting off herself. "Well, she seems to be fine right now. Let me know if you need anything."

Fox nodded. "Thanks."

The pink bird acknowledged the thanks with a tip of her head. She reached in her pocket and pulled out a black bandanna and tied it to the top of her head, removing the feathers from her eyes. "See you around McCloud."

"You too Bella."

As soon as Bella had left, Fox returned his focus on Krystal. He reached down and felt her pulse. It was weak and faint, but it was still there. The vulpine stood up and stretched, not knowing how sore he was. As he stood up, he heard heavy footsteps approach him and turned his attention to the source.

Wolf O' Donnell and the warrior cat Zargos were striding up to him. Wolf looked at the fallen figure of Krystal, huffed and returned his gaze to Fox. Zargos directed his statement at Fox as he gestured towards the vixen. "How is she?'

"She's hanging in there. She'll pull through. She has to."

Wolf nudged Zargos, trying to get him to get off the subject. Zargos sighed and spoke "We saw the lizards retreat to the North East. Shall we give chase?"

"No." Fox answered. "We are too over extended. We need to keep the soldiers here to clean up and transport the wounded back home."

Wolf rolled his eyes. "That's the stupidest answer I have ever heard. They are on the run! Let us go after them and get rid of them once and for all."

"Okay Wolf," Fox started to argue. "Let's go with that plan. Take all of our soldiers and go after them. If they retreat back to the castle, then we are done for. They could wipe out all of our troops in one go! Also, what if the retreat is a decoy? What if they want us to chase their soldiers, only to have another group appear and attack us? I'm sorry Wolf, but the answer is no."

Wolf growled, obviously displeased with the plan. "But what can I do? I'm not getting paid to clean up and build houses. I'm getting paid to fight!"

Fox thought for a moment. "Why don't you take Leon and Panther and go to the skies. Make sure that the soldiers are not regrouping to attack again. IF there are enemy fighters, then you are welcomed to engage."

Wolf's growling stopped. Finally, he started to laugh. His deep laughter echoed through the night as the lupine pounded Fox's back. "I like that plan!" His laughter stopped as fast as it started. "But I have no promises that we won't get into trouble."

With that statement, the leader of the Star Wolf team turned around on his heels and barked out "Leon, Panther! Start up your Wolfens! We're going hunting!"

Zargos shook his head as he watched the gleeful lupine climb in his own Wolfen. "He's too wild for his own good." The cat muttered to himself.

Fox overheard him. "Tell me about it. But when it comes to it, it's best to have Wolf as an ally, rather than an enemy."

The warrior cat looked at the vulpine. "It sounds like you speak from experience."

Fox nodded. "We worked together and we've fought against each other. He almost killed me several times, but each fight always ended with one of us retreating."

Zargos still looked at the retreating Wolfen with disgust. "He has no honor," the cat said, "The idea of destroying the castle while there are still people in it is absurd! Why did he even bring that up?"

Fox shrugged. "Wolf is motivated by money. He will get it by any means necessary. He doesn't care about the amount of casualties that gets in his way."

Zargos grunted with a hint of anger as he folded his arms. He leaned against the side of a tree and sighed wearily. Finally he motioned towards Krystal. "She saved my life you know?"

Fox smiled. "She certainly does that."

"But that brings up the question. Why me? I mean, we all know that Astra was in control of Krystal. She said it herself. Why go through the entire plan of just springing me out of jail?"

Fox shrugged, obviously puzzled by the question. "I don't know."

"When Astra, or Krystal was in the pit with me, they said that I had knowledge of warfare. That part is true, but I don't see my role, now that all of you are here."

Fox stood up. "Zargos. Your role is to help fight and provide hope. I don't know if you have noticed, but the soldiers here look up to you. I can see it in their faces and I have seen you fight. You fight better than I ever could. Besides, the slaves in that pen are counting on you to come back and free them. Even though they are still chained up, you still provide that beacon of hope to them. Don't break your promise. Go back and be a hero."

With that statement, Fox sat back down and took Krystal's pulse again. Still weak and faint, but still there. Zargos nodded. "You're a good person Fox McCloud. I'm glad you are on my side."

"Thanks. You too."

Zargos left Fox alone with Krystal and continued to clean up the battlefield. Ten minutes later, Fox became frustrated at no sign of Kix. Finally, he opened a communication line to Slippy, who was still patrolling in the air.

"Any sign of Falco?"

"None so far Fox!" the toad squeaky voice came over the channel. "I'll keep you updated!"

"Thanks Slip! By the way, good job tonight."

Even though Fox couldn't see him, the vulpine could tell that the toad smiled. Even the small praises can make Slippy's day. "Thanks Fox! Keep her safe and I'll let you know if anything happens! Slippy out!"

Fox turned off the coms then changed his mind. He attempted to connect to Falco, but all he got was static. _That makes sense_ the vulpine thought _Deep into the jungle, there would be interference. I should try Peppy._

He attempted to contact the Great Fox and was greeted by the aging hare.

"Fox McCloud! Why didn't you contact me right away when the battle was done?" Peppy yelled. "You nearly gave me a heart attack! You're as reckless as your father!"

Fox chuckled. "It's good to hear from you too Peppy!"

But Peppy was not done. "AND for me to hear about Krystal from Slippy? Fox! You need to start telling me things! I can't…" The hare stopped, caught up with emotion. "I can't lose you too."

Fox was taken aback by the hare's authenticity. "Peppy… I didn't know how you felt. I'm sorry. Truly, I am."

Peppy sniffed. "Apology accepted. Now go save the world Fox, it's what you do! Peppy out!"

The coms were silent once again and Fox started to feel guilty. _Peppy's right. I need to start thinking about others. I can't just focus on me and Krystal._

Part of him screamed to go and help the soldiers cleaning up the battlefield and burying the dead, but another part of him yearned to stay next to Krystal. The latter won and Fox remained sitting next to his love. Every so often, it seemed that Krystal would stop breathing, and McCloud quickly reached down to check her pulse, his heart racing, and his mind constantly full of worry as he thought that she would breathe her last. But he calmed down every time as he checked her pulse and were greeted with the familiar, yet faint thump.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a noise appeared. Soldiers stopped working while all looked up at the sky. It was whirring, and some soldiers started to moan. "The Emperor's coming back to finish the job!" Fox heard one say. This statement caused fear to spread among the men.

Finally, Fox reached a decision. "Grab anything that could be used as a weapon and get in cover! If they are coming back to finish the job, then let's take as much with us as we can!"

A lot of the soldiers cheered at the last sentence as they rushed around, grabbing fallen guns, swords and even spears. Soon the area was empty. The whirring got louder and louder, but when Fox saw who it was, he gave the order to stand down. Falco Lombardi landed his Arwing in the center of the area and in a smooth movement, jumped out of the cockpit. Once the blue bird landed on the ground, he saw all the soldiers standing ready with weapons still drawn.

"Quite the welcoming committee." Falco smirked. "I can feel the love."

"Stop playing around!" Fox snapped. "Where is everyone else?"

Falco became serious. "They are around five minutes out. They'll be coming in from the west. Once I saw the camp, I decided to fly ahead and let you know that they are coming."

Fox nodded. "Good job Falco. Get some food and rest yourself." He opened the coms and when Slippy answered, Fox attempted to keep his emotions in control. "Slippy! Why didn't you tell me that Falco was coming! Some soldiers nearly had a heart attack when they heard him approaching."

The toad stammered. "I-I thought that he had contacted you."

"Well, he didn't!" Fox snapped. "I was counting on you."

There was silence on the other line and Fox realized that he was being too harsh. When the toad still didn't answer, the leader of the Star Fox team decided to try again. "I'm sorry Slippy. I realize you are doing your best. Come down and relax. You need a break."

Slippy sighed on the other end. "Will do. Slippy out."

As soon as the toad hung up, the bushes rustled in the distance. Fox spun towards the noise and Falco commented. "That would be Kix."

The blue bird was right. Out of the forest came the lynx and five other people. Kix barked out orders and the healers spread into diffent directions, their medical supplies ready to treat the wounded. Kix rushed to Fox and breathlessly asked, "I got here as fast as I could. Where is she?"

Fox pointed towards the sleeping figure of the vixen and Kix hurried towards her. Upon arrival, the lynx knelt down and started to pull out supplies. The first thing he did was check her vitals. _Weak. But it's still there_ he thought. He heard Fox walk up behind him and the lynx turned around. "I may need your help."

The vulpine nodded wordlessly and got on both knees next to the leader of the rebellion. Kix inspected the stitches. "Not bad," he said. "You did this?"

Fox nodded, but he was smiling on the inside at Kix's praise. But then his heart immediately dropped at his next sentence. "But I am going to have to open it up and inspect her wounds. You may have closed the outside and that did stop the bleeding, but Krystal could be internally bleeding."

 _McCloud! You are an idiot!_ Fox berated himself. _You may have just killed her._

"Would you be able to fix her up?" Fox asked "Close the wound inside and all that?"

Kix sighed. "It depends on the severity," he explained. "If it was a deep cut to, let's say the kidney, it will be a hard job, but it can be done. But if it's the heart, then there won't be a lot I can do. Fortunately," Kix inspected the vixen before him, "The cut is nowhere near the heart."

With that sentence, Kix undid Fox's work and cleaned up the wound. He nodded to himself and dove in. First, Kix had Fox brace Krystal, because he knew that she would spastically move due to pain. As McCloud held her shoulders down, Kix pulled out bandages, a clean towel, needle and thread, and a pair of tongs. He reached in and closed the wound with the small pair of tongs, causing Krystal to scream. For a second, her eyes were wide open and looking around wildly. Fox attempted to soothe her, but nothing was working. Finally, the vixen passed out to pain. It felt like eternity to Fox before Kix wiped his head and commented "First part's done. Now for the second."

"Second?"

"Re-stitching and applying the bandages."

Fox nodded. "Do it."

Kix resumed his work. He was done in five minutes and the lynx already started to apply the bandages. Once the lynx was done, he stood up panting heavily. Finally, Fox asked. "Will she be alright?"

"Do you want the truth?"

Fox nodded, his heart crawling into his throat. "Yes."

"I don't know. Even with your stitch job, she still lost a lot of blood. I don't know if she will be able to pull through. Only time can tell."

Fox caught a sob and he nodded sadly. Kix walked to the leader of the Star Fox team and patted his back. "I've done everything I can. I'm sorry."

"Can you take her back to the cave?"

Kix nodded. "We will have to. I need to keep a close eye on her. I'll have some stretchers made."

The vulpine nodded with thanks and the lynx left him. The leader of the Star Fox team knelt down and hurriedly wiped his eyes. He brushed the hair away from the forehead of Krystal and the vulpine whispered. "Come back to me. Fight."

Anger took over him and the vulpine stood up and walked quickly to the edge of the forest. In one smooth movement, the leader of the Star Fox team reached down, picked up a rock and sent it spinning in the air. The rock zoomed and hit a tree branch with a resounding crack. The tree branch broke at the rock's impact but remained attached to the tree with a single thread.

Fox McCloud looked up the night sky and screamed with anguish. Pain, sorrow and anger came pouring out with the long prolonged scream. Soldiers stopped working at the sound of the scream, and their hearts went out to him. They knew who he was and how much he had lost. Now he was on the brink of losing another person he loved again.

/

The first thing Krystal saw was the blinding light that filled her vision. She coughed and groaned with pain, as she attempted to shield her eyes. The vixen slowly, but surely got her bearings together and realized that she was laying down. She closed her eyes, moved her hand which was blocking her eyes from the sun and reached down feeling the ground. It was grass, and it was the softest grass she had ever felt in her life. Krystal sighed contently, enjoying the warmth of the sun and the softness, coolness of the grass. Her fingers played between the blades of the grass as her fur ruffled with the soft breeze. The telepathic vixen laid for a few moments.

Then an image appeared in her mind and it struck her like lightning. It was a male vulpine and his concerned face was hovering over her as she was lying down. Krystal shook her head, trying to erase the dreadful picture. But as soon as it disappeared, another one appeared and this time it was a ground full of blood and dirt. Lifeless corpses littered the area and Krystal could tell that a battle was fought there. Empty eyes stared at her as she looked around and the stench was overwhelming. The sky was gray and slowly becoming dark as night. Evil laughter echoed, causing her fur to rise. Once again, Krystal shook her head, erasing the picture from her mind as she tried to return to the state of contentment that she was in. _What were they?_ She thought.

A noise caught her ear coming from the east and Krystal moved her head in that direction. As she did, it became louder and Krystal could tell what it was: water. She opened her eyes and slowly stood up, stretching her body as she did. Finally, the vixen shielded her eyes from the sun and gasped with awe. She was on a cliff, made of grass and rock, overlooking a giant river down below. Across from her and slightly to the left, a waterfall roared, splashing into the river. Laughter and chatter was heard from the ground and Krystal looked down, seeing people playing in the river. Children splashed each other while parents lounged on the beach. Suddenly, Krystal had a deep longing to join the playful children and the parents.

The vixen turned her head and noticed a small trail on her right. It led straight down to the river, but unlike the rocky trails, it was grass. Flowers and bushes grew alongside the trail and Krystal was astonished at the beauty. But once she took a step, pain flashed through her side and the Cerinian telepath nearly crashed down to the ground. She clutched at her side and another image appeared in her head. This time, it was a snarling lizard, with razor sharp teeth, holding a sword and plunging down. As soon as the sword made contact with her body, Krystal screamed with pain and nearly passed out. But as quick as it had started, the image, along with the pain, disappeared. Krystal pulled her hand away from her side and gasped.

Her entire paw was bloody. She looked down and saw a huge scar on her right side and as soon as she touched it, pain followed. Krystal gasped and knelt down on the soft grass groaning. She tenderly touched her side again and looked at her hand. The blood was gone! The vixen looked at her side with confusion and the scar wasn't there! _What the heck is going on?_

Laughter brought her out of her stupor and Krystal looked down at the river. Children were still playing and parents were still relaxing and enjoying the beach. But one child caught her eye and it was a young male fox. He wore a blue swimsuit with white lace which was tied in the front. He smiled at the vixen and waved at her, motioning her to come. _I've seen him before_ , Krystal thought, _But where?_

The vixen searched her memory, but came up with nothing. However, she had a deep feeling that she had seen the child before. Determined to figure out who it was, Krystal took the trail down to the river. This time, she had a goal and a purpose, so she determinedly marched on. The beauty of the trail that had caught her eye earlier, had no effect on the vixen as she continued her way.

But Krystal momentarily stopped as her feet touched the sand. It was the softest sand in her life, unlike the rough ones she had felt. It was soft as silk and her toes happily played through the sand. It was not hot, but it wasn't cold either. Krystal smiled to herself. _This is the life. This is the life I want._

Suddenly, another image hit her and this time it was the same full grown male fox that she had seen. He was hovering above her and whispering "Come back to me. Fight." Then he disappeared and the image was gone. Krystal swayed in place, but she shook her head again, realizing where she was. Each and every image that she had gotten stuck with her like glue. It caused her to become more confused as she thought about what they meant.

The vixen turned her attention back to the river and became shocked. The river was empty! No more children laughing and playing. No more parents were relaxing on the beach. It was like a ghost town. The only sounds she heard was the river gurgling and bubbling happily as the waterfall roared and poured thousands of gallons of water down below. Making a decision, Krystal continued to walk towards the river and she slowly put her feet in. It was cool, but not ice cold as she had expected. As the vixen became more courageous, she waded in until the water was up to her knees before she stopped. The warmth of the sun mixed with the coolness of the twinkling river provided a sensation that Krystal couldn't explain. It was like she was floating on air, as comfortable as she could be. As she was enjoying the combination, another image hit her and this time she had her arms wrapped around someone. This time, Krystal heard herself saying "Oh Fox! You found it! It's beautiful!" In her paw was an earring and she looked up and saw the emerald green eyes of the vulpine before her. He smiled and her heart melted. Suddenly the image disappeared and Krystal was left with only one name: Fox.

A giggle snapped Krystal out of her thought, and the vixen turned towards the source of the sound. The child that Krystal had seen smiled and waved at her. "Come and play with me!"

Slowly, the vixen walked towards him and was surprised as a small splash of water hit her. The tod laughed again and splashed her. The cold water hit her fur, but Krystal didn't care. She splashed the water at the tod and the child giggled. "No fair Mom! You make bigger splashes!"

 _Mom?_

Krystal caught her breath. She looked closely at the child and all of a sudden, the vision hit her once again. It zoomed through her mind at super speed and then disappeared. Krystal stood in the shallows and trembled. "Mom? Are you alright?"

Krystal studied young James McCloud before her and confirmed it was indeed the same person in her vision. The way he stood and his mischievous eyes were the dead giveaways. Krystal inched in closer and opened her arms. James giggled and ran through the water, splashing the crystal clear liquid everywhere. He hit Krystal with the full force of a ten year old kid and Krystal wrapped her arms around him. Tears started to fall as she buried her face in the young tod's neck. They remained hugging for a few minutes then Krystal unwrapped herself to speak.

"James, I-"

She stopped herself. James disappeared! Krystal frantically looked around, searching for the source of her happiness. After a few minutes of searching around the river, Krystal decided to leave the cold waters and search around the beach.

"Hello Krystal." A voice behind her said.

Krystal turned around suddenly. There was another vixen standing before her, her fur white as snow. Her eyes were gleaming golden. "Who are you?" she asked.

"Let me help you remember." The vixen said as she stepped forward.

"What do you mea-" Krystal was cut off as the vixen placed her hand on her forehead.

Images and memories rushed back to her head. Her parents smiling at her when she was living in Cerinia. Her sadness and anger when her planet was tragically destroyed, causing her to be the last Cerinian survivor. Her feeling of freedom as she flew on the pterodactyl as she explored for answers. The fear yet determined emotion as she faced General Scales. Waking up to a full grown vulpine with emerald eyes, as he determinedly held onto the staff, stopping her fall into the pit. The entirety of the Aparoid War and the crash into Planet Dager. Krystal remembered the soft feminine voice saying "Let me save you."

Then the images became clearer as the vixen continued to remember. The jokes by Falco and his ability to always keep the air light. The caring quality of Slippy as he dive tackled her into the ground at the War Council. The advice and wisdom of Peppy as he always guided her through the Aparoid War. But the one image that was the clearer of them all was Fox.

She smiled as she thought of Fox catching his breath as she stepped out of her room, wearing the Star Fox uniform for the first time. Her heart raced a bit, when they sparred with each other, crashing on the mat, his warm panting breath washing over her. But the image that stood out the most was of her holding Fox's waist on Dinosaur Planet. Tricky's voice echoed through her mind "You can come her for your honeymoon." She giggled at Fox's red face.

Marriage didn't seem important to her, but as Krystal regained all of her memories, she realized that he was the one. She knew that he would do anything for her, including sacrificing his life. His name echoed in her brain like a drum: _Fox, Fox, Fox_. Her heart swelled with love as she yearned to be with him again.

The memories stopped and Krystal stood in the river water breathing heavily. The snowy vixen stood before her with a blank expression. Both vixens stood, staring at each other, neither saying a word. Finally Krystal spoke, her voice like a whip. "Astra. What do you want?'

Astra merely held her hands out. "Krystal. I warned you this would happen."

"What happened?"

"You're dead." Astra spoke bluntly.

The news steamrolled the vixen and suddenly Krystal had a hard time breathing. _I can't be dead. I just can't!_ she thought bitterly to herself. _Fox must be broken right now._

"Let me clear this up." Astra said reading her mind. "You're not dead yet, but you are about to be. Even now, I can feel your life force fading. Right now, you are being rushed back to the rebellion hideout where you will be getting treated."

"So," Krystal stepped forward eagerly "I will be better? I will wake up?"

Astra sighed with sympathy in her voice. "You won't make it. You lost too much blood. I had warned you that you would die. I had foreseen this. But it's not too late."

Krystal turned away from the Spirit and looked back at the waterfall. She knew the next question. "Will you accept me Krystal?"

The Cerinian telepath looked back at Astra and this time Astra's expression was one of worry. "I care about you Krystal and believe me when I say that this is the only chance."

"But what if I want to die?"

Astra chuckled. "You die? You won't let that happen. I have seen your love for Fox McCloud and I know that you would do everything in your power to be reunited with him. I know you Krystal. I lived in your body!"

Krystal was silent. She knew what she had said during the War Council. The vixen willingly volunteered that she would accept Astra's help in order to have Wolf stay and help fight. But a part of her was screaming to let go. Just to die and end everyone's pain. But she knew that it wouldn't work. Astra's words rang true. Krystal wanted to be with Fox and the vixen knew that his pain would never end as he would constantly blame himself for her death.

"Did you know that this used to be my planet?" Astra asked, snapping Krystal out of her thought. "I wandered her hundreds of years ago. Before the corruption of man and the hostility of the Emperor, this was what it looked like." The snowy vixen walked into the river, towards the waterfall. She stopped and pointed at the falls and commented, "This was my home. Ever since the Higher Beings created me, I remained there. But once the Emperor approached Dager, I left. I wandered until I could find someone who was powerful enough to fight him and that was how I found you Krystal." Astra turned back to Krystal and said "Please Krystal. With your help, we can return this planet to its former glory. Only with the destruction of the Emperor and his armies of evil, will this planet finally see peace and beauty."

Krystal didn't say anything, which prompted Astra to continue. "Time's running out Krystal. You need to decide now. Live or die? Which is it?"

The spirit waved her hand and the mist from the waterfall floated into the air. "Live and have a family?" Astra commented, waving her hands. Krystal paid close attention to the mist and saw an image of herself with Fox, holding a small tod in her arms. _James_ she thought. The image changed to Fox and herself dropping off James at school. Finally the image changed to Fox saying one sentence. "I love you."

"Or die and have Fox constantly live in guilt?" With another wave of her hands, the image changed to Fox sitting in a dark room, crying bitterly. Then it changed to him at a bar, drinking shots after shots, trying to drown himself with emotion. Then the image changed to Fox screaming at Falco, Slippy and Peppy. Finally it changed to Falco sadly looking at his best friend as he exited the Great Fox, holding a suitcase.

"Tick tock, Krystal. Time's running out." Astra warned.

"I want to live." She whispered.

Astra stepped forward eagerly. "What did you say?"

Krystal clenched her hands with anger. Anger at the Emperor for hurting people she cared about. Anger at Astra for making everything so complicated. Finally, she had a burning anger at herself for willing to die.

Astra smiled, feeling the rage reverberating from Krystal. "Then you know the words you need to say."

"I-I accept you Astra."

"Finally!" Astra said with glee. She glowed in a golden light, blinding Krystal. She felt entire being burning. The light filled her vision and when she tried to look away, it still blinded her nonetheless. It was seared into her eyes and into her brain. Krystal yelled with pain as she felt the light enter her, then the screaming stopped. Finally, darkness consumed her.

/

 _Dager_

The darkness of the woods were only illuminated by small, moving darts of light. Torches were being held as feet pounded against the dirt. Fox McCloud ran next to the stretcher that was holding Krystal, hoping that each bend or each hill that they cross was the source of the hideout. McCloud looked behind him and saw the line of soldiers, carrying other wounded. The sight was hard to see. The injuries ranged from a simple gunshot wound to the shoulder to missing limbs. A lot of the wounded were moaning pitifully, asking for water, food or more medicine. Medical personnel raced back and forth, attempting to help all the soldiers, but there were so few of them.

Fox's ears perked up at a scream from the front of the line. He swiveled his head and looked ahead. The long scream turned into sobbing as the line got held up a bit. McCloud took the advantage and looked at Krystal, reaching over and checking her pulse. It was still there, but it was faint. Fox was shocked at how long she had held on, and Kix was equally shocked too. As the people were preparing stretchers, Kix had approached the leader of the Star Fox team and said "She almost went away. But she fought back. Her pulse disappeared for a few minutes, but she's still alive and breathing."

"Is that possible?" McCloud asked.

Kix stroked his chin. "In some cases, although rare, yes it is possible. But at the amount of blood she lost, it was a miracle."

Fox shook his head. "Miracle or not, I'm glad she's still here."

"So am I my friend. You need to keep a close eye on her when we are transporting everyone."

With that statement, Kix barked out an order for a line to be made. The wounded were picked up and put on the stretchers. Tired soldiers hardly complained as they paired up with each stretcher and picked up the people. As two soldiers, an elk and a lion picked up Krystal, Fox looked at both of them square in the eyes and said "You better not drop her."

"Get going!" a voice behind McCloud said. "You're holding up the line!"

Fox shook his head and noticed that the line started moving again. He nodded at the soldier behind him. "Sorry about that." The leader of the Star Fox team moved with Krystal's stretcher and got closer and closer to the source of the scream. He could see a group of soldiers huddling around someone. A man succumbed to his wounds and was lying dead on the stretcher. A woman, presumably his wife was hysterical, screaming and crying at the sight of her comrade and dead husband. Fox shook his head sadly as he moved around the group. His heart went out to each of the soldier, knowing how much they had to sacrifice.

The line moved in silence for few minutes until a cheer was heard. "We've made it!" was the cry from the front. With that statement, a surge happened as soldiers found energy from their reserves and started to hurry towards the hide out. Fox helped carry Krystal up the small pathway and into the cave. Once the vulpine was inside the well-lit cave, he found an empty spot, which was secluded from the other people and directed the soldiers who were carrying Krystal's stretcher to lay her there.

Once the deed was done, Fox sat down tiredly and took a swig of water from his canteen. The canteen was given to him by Kix and at the lynx's insistence, the vulpine accepted it. For the millionth time that day, Fox reached down and checked Krystal's vital, relieved to see that she was still alive. Falco and Slippy walked together inside the cave and helped place down a wounded soldier by their families. Falco had left the camp and flew back to the hideout to warn the people that they were coming. He was greeted with a lot of cheers and shouts of exultations, but once Falco saw the torches, the blue bird immediately went and helped.

The ace pilot and the mechanic turned and after a few seconds of searching, their eyes rested on Fox. The friends hurried over and once they reached the leader, Falco said "How is she doing?"

"Holding on." Fox answered. "Against all odds."

Falco sighed, a breath of relief and nodded his head. Wordlessly, the blue bird sat down next to his best friend and Slippy across from Fox. The three friends sat in silence, absorbing everything that had happened in the past few days, from the near execution of the vulpine to the battle, the three friends had hardly any sleep.

Finally Fox said, "Get some sleep. You all deserve it."

Falco shook his head. "If you're away, I'm staying awake."

"Same here!" the toad said in agreement.

But Fox rejected the idea. "You need your rest. You won't be useful if you are tired. Go to sleep, that's an order."

"With all due respect, but order denied." Falco said. "You're our leader and you won't be useful to me if you're tired. Either you go to sleep so we can go to sleep or you stay awake and we'll staty awake."

Fox was silent which prompted the blue bird to snicker. "So you see the dilemma we're in?"

Fox opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. He looked up and saw the lynx hurrying with his medical bag. Kix reached the group, and without saying a word checked on Krystal. As Fox watched the leader of the rebellion work, he noticed Kix's expression changing. The lynx muttered to himself. "This is impossible."

"What's going on?" Fox asked.

Kix ignored him and continued to inspect the vixen. "Hey!" Falco said. "Fox asked you a question and she is a part of this team! What's going on?"

Kix looked up and said "Her heart's getting stronger. Her pulse is becoming more normal again. I don't understand. She should have died."

Fox moved and reached over and checked Krystal's pulse. The lynx was right as he was greeted with the soft _thumps_ of heartbeat, which was getting stronger with each second.

Fox smiled and gave out a small whoop. "When will she wake up?"

Kix shrugged. "With comas and a traumatic injury as this. Who knows? It could be tomorrow. In a few weeks? A-"

His words were cut off as Krystal eyes snapped open. "It could be right now?" Falco asked.

Kix leaned in. "Hello Krystal. How are you feeling?"

Krystal opened her mouth to say something, but words were not forming as her lips moved. "What did you say?" the lynx asked.

Suddenly Kix felt himself being pushed away and the lynx crashed against the ground. Fox stood up with surprise and reached down to help Kix stand up. "Krystal? What are you…"

Fox found out that he couldn't say anything, as he was choking underneath the vice-like grip of the vixen. Krystal had stood up and in one smooth movement grabbed Fox and slammed the vulpine hard against the rocky cave wall. As Fox choked and struggled underneath the hand of Krystal he looked at her face. Suddenly, a flash of gold crossed her eyes and Fox knew what happened.

"Astra." He choked out.

Astra smiled. The vixen looked back at the three people who were standing with shock. "Now my plan is in full effect." Astra turned back to Fox who were still struggling and hitting the strong hand of Krystal. "And you Mr. McCloud have been a thorn in my side. So you will be the first to die."


End file.
